Coup D’état
by tonks1
Summary: Dom's point of view of the six years prior to the final heist. Dom takes you from his incarceration till the point before the first movie begins. Slight overlap with "Art Imitating Life" and "Evolving Into Me". Dom/Letty, Dom/oc.
1. Incarceration

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Fast and the Furious, it's characters, or situations. I am making no money from this work of fiction.**

**A/N: Welcome to the inner workings of Dom's mind. I alluded to this in the companion fiction _Art Imitating Life_. You don't have to read that one to enjoy this fic however, it definitely explains who Daphne is and Han's work in greater detail. This story will take you from Dom's time in jail right up to the beginning of the first movie. It should span six years of time giving me plenty to say, but I'll let the work speak for itself.**

* * *

**Coup D'état**

**Chapter 1: Incarceration**

I would never be a senior in high school. I have my right arm and a three quarter torque wrench to thank for that. I'm lying awake on this cold metal bunk, my cell mate snoring on the bunk beneath me. I'm not angry, just sad and resigned. Sometimes I get confused but tonight I am very sad and resigned. I think I am starting to accept that I am eighteen and I am going to miss out on the next two years of my life. The whole high school senior experience was gone the moment the wrench hit Linder. I wouldn't get to take my girl to prom, I wouldn't graduate with my best friends, I wouldn't get to break the faces of the boys who were trying to push up on my sister.

I missed my family. I missed them, and yet I refused to let them come to visit me. They tried a couple of weeks ago but I refused to make a visit list. I didn't want anyone to see me in here. It would just remind me of what I was missing out there, of the freedom of the garage, of the rush of the streets. It only took me a week and a half to realize why jail was horrible. You remember how free you are on the outside, how you could take small decisions for granted like what shoes you wanted to wear or when to take a shower. I wasn't strong enough to resist the oppressiveness of this place knowing they could flit between this life and their life whenever they felt the need to check on me. So I kept them away and I thought about them, waiting for a time when I would be strong enough, composed enough, to allow contact between our separate existences.

I should have known that my refusal to let them come to me wouldn't stop them from keeping in contact. A month into my sentence I received a surprise when I went to check my commissary balance. I needed some new socks, the previous pair mysteriously disappearing while I was having lunch the day prior. I knew I had to be able to figure something out regarding my meager balance, knowing that I hadn't earned enough to buy a pair of socks yet. I was shocked when I saw a hundred extra dollars in my account. For a moment I wanted to question it and then my lips ghosted into a smile. Vince or Han, possibly both, must have sent this to me even though I was refusing to see them. Happily I got my socks, thankful I wouldn't have to get a start in the favor-trading business around here.

Thinking of the socks is what got me into a nostalgic mood tonight. According to the calendar my cell mate was keeping, I knew that Halloween would be coming up in a week. I sighed heavily contemplating the decision I was making. I wanted to be selfish, to give in to calling to check in. I wanted to hear their voices. I was ready to torture myself. Childishly I wanted to know if they missed me even though it was my self-imposed isolation that was keeping us apart. So the next night when I was allotted fifteen minutes to make phone calls I took the opportunity to call my house and see if anyone was home. For a moment I felt nervous. What if nobody was home? What if Mia no longer lived there? After a few moments I heard a cool female voice telling me that the receiver had accepted the call.

"DOM!" I recognized the voice immediately, my heart racing in my chest. Letty. My girl was there, apparently spending enough time at the house that she felt comfortable picking up the phone.

"Hey baby," I replied, my voice rough with emotion. It felt both wonderful and awful to speak to her. I could tell she was shocked that I called and her voice took on this fragile, feminine quality that she normally didn't display.

"We miss you man," she said quietly still fighting for control of her emotions.

"I miss all of you too."

"I miss you."

"Its ok baby," I could feel that she needed the reassurance.

"God I miss you," she told me again. This was painful to bear.

"Hey is anyone else there?"

"What? The gang's all here," she said excitedly. I was glad. As much as I wanted to hear her voice it was hurting me that my call had thrown a wrench in her system.

"I love you. I don't have much time. Can I speak to my sister?"

"Wait hold on," she rushed out before passing the phone to Mia.

"Dom! How are you?" Mia asked her voice overly perky.

"I'm good, I…"

"Are you getting enough to eat?" she cut me off, eager to get as much out of me as she could. Such a worrier my sister could be.

"Yeah and…"

"We decorated everything for Halloween," she continued. Mia loved to decorate for the holidays, quickly going overboard if you let her. Dad used to let her have free reign except in his garage space. Wait, did someone put the brakes on her this year or did she demolish the garage?

"Mia," I said slowly, deeply, "did you do the garage?"

"No I did not do the garage," she said in a crabby tone. Clearly someone, most likely Vince, had put their foot down on that issue.

"Good."

"Gosh no one will back me up on that," she replied glumly.

I hastened to change the subject, "Are you ok at the house?"

"Yeah I'm cool. Everyone's been really cool."

"Glad to hear it."

"I can't wait until you get back."

"Neither can I Mi. Listen, can I speak to Vince?"

"Stay safe bro."

"No, you stay safe sis. Stay out of trouble," I said, flipping into big brother mode, "And keep the decorations out of the garage."

"Ok ok," I could tell she was rolling her eyes.

"I love you little sis."

"I love you."

"Bye."

"Bye," she relayed to me before passing the phone to Vince.

"Yo man," Vince greeted me, his voice rougher than I remembered.

"Yo. Ya gettin' into fights with Mia so soon?"

"Whatever," Vince said, his temper rising slightly. They must have had the decorating discussion recently if he was feeling sore enough for the mention of it to affect his tone.

"I am surprised you could resist her," I teased. Mia's tenacity was Toretto legend.

"I am standing firm on that one," Vince replied ruefully.

"Way to man up Vince."

"You know it," he said before we both laughed. It felt good to laugh.

"So how are things at DT?"

"Business is good," I took that to mean that he was keeping things running smoothly.

"Thanks for looking out for it for me, for looking out for Mia and Letty…" I started but Vince cut me off, clearly uncomfortable with the direction I was heading.

"Everything will keep till you get home," he assured me.

"Sure. Hey your commissary kept me in socks. Keep it coming," I said half joking, mostly serious.

"Aigh't holla," he finished, handing the phone to Daphne.

"Hi Dom," Daphne said, her silky voice alight with wit. Han's girlfriend was so sharp that it made it difficult to follow her conversation if you didn't give it your undivided attention.

"Hey Daphne."

"You in denial yet?" the question caught me off guard. There would be no dancing around where I was with her.

"No. Resigned, but not in denial," I was surprised that I was able to tell her the truth.

"We could pretend it was like eternal summer camp," she offered brightly, not allowing me to fall into a foul mood.

"Summer camp?" I questioned disgustedly. I don't know why but the image of boy scouts all dressed alike in their uniforms immediately popped into my mind. I shuddered.

"You're right that is a worse hell," she said with laughter in her voice.

"How is Mia, seriously?"

"She's doing well Dom."

"And Letty?"

"Yes, Letty too."

"Keep an eye out for everyone, Han included," I told her, knowing she would protect them to the best of her ability. She'd keep them from making silly mistakes. Han had a winner on his hands with this one.

"I will."

"Bye Daphne."

"Bye," she told me before passing the phone to Han.

"Hey Dom."

"Hey Han, what's good? It sounds like everything is ok without me," I told him. I didn't mean for it to come out with a jealous edge. This call was really starting to affect me.

"We're maintaining," he told me in his calming voice.

"I'll bet," I couldn't help the dryness in my voice, "Are all of you staying at the house?" It suddenly dawned on me that maybe I had nothing to fear. If they were all still working at the café and the garage, perhaps they were taking up residence in the house too.

"No but we chill here a lot," he told me.

"Oh, you can all move in if you want," I told him eagerly. I was desperate to be useful somehow. I sighed, "I don't want Mia staying at home by herself."

"She's not, Letty's here," he replied quickly. I was reassured by the fact that Letty was staying there to keep Mia company.

"I didn't mean to leave her behind, to leave her alone," I said quietly. I was feeling melancholy all of a sudden.

"You haven't," Han said in his even tempered way. I was glad I saved these worries for him. He wouldn't let on how weak I was acting at the moment.

"Listen, I will write to you guys and try to call again in a couple of months. I just don't want to get into a regular habit…"I decided on the fly. I would make the effort but I didn't want them getting too used to the contact. It was still very difficult for me.

"That's cool." The guard tapped the phone with his night stick, swirling his fingers around to tell me to wrap it up.

"Well I have to go," I told him reluctantly.

"Yeah, be careful man and don't drop…" Han warned me. I started to laugh cutting across him. If only my worries were about the proverbial soap in the showers. I grinned, thinking of my missing socks. If only he knew. I was in more danger trying to keep my incidentals than getting taken advantage of in the showers.

"Jerk. Don't go there. Bye."

"Bye Dom," he chuckled. The phone disconnected and I immediately sat up, ready for my bunk.

I am happy to retreat to the relative quiet to reflect on the state of my family. Mia might be the only one of them related to me by blood but the rest of them were my family too. Vince and I had been best friends since we met in the third grade. I'll never forget how we started hanging as long as I live. Vince has always had this indescribable appetite which has been known to get him into loads of trouble. On this particular day Vince's mother apparently forgot to pack his lunch, at least that's what I thought that at the time. He was staring at everyone eat their sandwiches with a forlorn look in his eye. I caught him staring at my sandwich and gave him the evil eye. I was well behaved in class so the look caught him by surprise. Vince sized me up, figuring I was a pushover, then proceeded to stalk across the lunch room, ripping off my sandwich and chips in the process. Before he could feel smug about it I proceeded to whip his ass right there in front of the teachers and my classmates.

The two of us were hungry, scratched, and bleeding slightly as we sat in the hallway waiting for the principle to finish talking to our parents. My father came out and I immediately hung my head. I didn't want to see the disappointment in my father's eyes. Fighting in school was high on his didn't-I-raise-you-better-than-this-what-were-you-thinking lecture list. As I got to my feet, Vince's mom came out, grabbing his arm to pull him out of the chair.

"Damn it Vince," she said angrily, dragging him down the hallway. My father and I followed, a frown marring both of our faces. "Why are you always getting into effing trouble? Over some kids lunch no less?"

"Mom," he said angrily, not struggling to release himself from her grip but trying to keep pace with her so they could make a quick getaway, "I wouldn't have taken his if you'd given me a lunch." She stopped walking, smacking Vince before lowering her face to his, sticking one of her fingers in his face.

"You listen and you listen good," she growled, "I don't need this sass from you."

"Yeah, you need a drink," Vince shot back. I was impressed he was still talking back. I thought he should have still been finding his teeth after that slap. His mother seemed stunned by his words too. She bent her head to one side then straightened up, reclaiming his arm.

"You're right, I do. Let's go," she told him as they made their way outside. My dad and I stood on the sidewalk stunned. I looked at him with wide eyes.

"I feel real bad papa," I told him. I pitied Vince. I understood why he took my lunch and I felt bad for giving him the business about it. Dad looked at me, his frown still in place.

"Then you know what you have to do," he told me in his deep contemplative voice. And I did. The next day I asked my mom to make two sandwiches: one for me, one a peace offering to Vince. When I approached him at lunch he eyed me warily. I silently offered the sandwich which he accepted with a handshake and a grin. We've been road dogs ever since.

Letty's been in the family almost as long as Vince. Her family moved into the neighborhood when she was ten. I was twelve at the time and at that funny space between being a kid and being a teenager. Vince and I were spending time with my dad in the shed behind the house. He was working on his charger, graciously letting us hand him tools, patiently explaining exactly what he was doing. My mom had been gone a year by now and we were finally starting to get into a normal routine around the house. Dad still tried to spend as little time as possible in the house. He said everything inside reminded him of her. That particular afternoon I was getting highly annoyed. This girl with curly dark brown hair that was almost black kept stalking back and forth past our driveway. She'd been up to this for the last three weeks. At first I thought it was kind of funny but now it was just driving me nuts.

Just as I was getting ready to yell at her though, I heard Mia's voice loud and clear, "Would you _puleaze_ stop stalking my house!" I turned to look at Vince and we burst into laughter. My dad looked up from his work, finally noticing the girl who was still as a statue at the mouth of the driveway, her face oriented towards our front lawn. A casual observer would have thought she was embarrassed or scared. But after seeing her for the past three weeks, I knew that she was livid. She'd let some of her temper get the best of her when I would give her a sneering look as she passed.

"I'm not _stalkin'_ your house," she shot back, her jaw tight, her fists balled at her side. This sent me and Vince over the edge again.

"Then why have you been prancing around here for the last three weeks?" Mia countered her temper still high. My dad got up, approaching the girl. I was expecting her to bolt but she stood her ground.

"Look mister," she huffed, her jaw still tight, "I'm not stalkin' your house. I've been tryin' to look at your car."

Vince and I looked at each other again grinning widely. This chick was getting more entertaining by the minute. But my dad didn't seem to find her crazy. Instead he lowered himself to one knee so they could be at eye level. They stared at each other for a moment before he spoke, his gruff voice making her jump a little.

"What's your name?"

"Letty," she said quickly, "What's yours?"

Dad chuckled, the sound rumbling in his chest, "Call me Mr. T."

"Like the wrestler?" Dad laughed again.

"Yah. So you want to peek under the hood huh," he said, feeling her out.

"Yep. You're making progress but I can't see all the details when I'm walking past. The sidewalk is kinda far from the garage," she brazened out.

"You mean when you stalk by," Mia said crossly. Dad looked over to the lawn with his sharp look. I knew Mia was rolling her eyes but she didn't say anything else.

"I tell you what," my dad said after giving her another appraising look, apparently impressed by Letty's boldness, "we'll ask your parents. If they say yes, then you can come learn with Vince and Dom." My mouth fell open. Letty smiled wide before frowning slightly.

"Can you ask now?" she sounded suspicious. It would take her some time to realize that Tony Toretto did not renege on a promise.

"Yeah, but what's the hurry?"

"She's already wasted three weeks prancing around on the sidewalk," Vince yelled out, still amused. I have a derisive snort of laughter which sent him and me into a fresh wave of laughter. Letty blushed. Dad took pity on her and went with her to ask her patent's permission right away. I was expecting her to return with him that afternoon but she was clearly trying to show us that she had some restraint. Instead she showed up the next day after school ready to work.

I was expecting Letty to be a pain in the backside, asking a whole bunch of questions and slowing down the whole operation. She surprised me with her general knowledge of basic things like tools, seeming content to just watch and learn rather than ask questions. Over time I just learned to treat Letty like I with the other kids at school, just another student. She and Mia eventually made up, their friendship odd because of their differing preferences: Mia loved to accentuate her feminine side while Letty was happiest as one of the boys. But sometimes when Letty would sleep over, those two would sit up well into the night sharing secrets, their relationship budding into kinship. They'd even got as far as telling other people that they were sisters for a while. I think they quashed that after they realized that Letty's feelings for me were more romantic than brotherly. It would take me a while to figure that one out though and even longer to act on it.

My fourteenth year was filled with changes. Dad had started to race on the circuit. His whole crew became extended family, filling our back yard and our house with laughter, beer, and barbeque. The family barbeque grew out of this after race ritual. Additionally, my voice started to change, I grew at least a foot, and I started to go girl crazy. That's how I met Han. Carmen, Hector's cousin, had finally gotten breasts. Every guy in our grade wanted to test drive them out including me. I had finally worked up the courage to ask her to the homecoming dance when I saw her talking to this lanky Asian kid. My eyes narrowed. Who the heck was he? And then he did something unforgivable: leaning casually against the lockers, he reached out and tucked a stand of her hair behind her ear before pulling her towards him to whisper something. Carmen blushed, giggling, and shaking her head in the affirmative. I knew that she was going to the homecoming dance with that kid and it pissed me off that he got to her before I did.

I ended up taking Joi Tran to the homecoming dance. She was pretty for thirteen even if she was still pretty flat in the chest department. Being beaten to the punch by that kid had really rankled so I made sure to practice all of my moves on Joi. I held her hand, brushed the small of her back when she walked in front of me, slowly pushed the hair off of her face before whispering in her ear. Joi was blushing so much it should have been indecent but it bolstered my confidence. That's why when I returned from the bathroom and saw Han flirting with Joi I snapped. My stride got stiffer as I approached, my jaw set. What did he think he was a lothario?

"Yo," I said with an edge. My hands were balled into fists in my pockets. Han grinned.

"Maybe later you'll give me some joy," he told her, causing her to blush. My fingers itched to punch him for the innuendo. He turned to me again and grinned, then left to rejoin Carmen. That kid had nerve.

"What was that?" I asked Joi, my voice still edgy.

"What? Who, Han?" she stammered flushing a deeper shade of pink. Annoyed at the whole situation I walked away, leaving Joi to fend for herself the rest of the dance. I should have known that it would hurt her feelings though. As the dance was ending I walked outside to look for Vince and wait for my Dad to pick us up. Five minutes later I felt someone shove me in the back. I turned around, my fists ready, to face Johnny, Joi's big brother. Joi was standing a few feet away her face wet with tears. Crap. Johnny was going to defend his sister in the same way I would if someone had treated Mia callously. I took a step forward, understanding his position and yet unable to back down.

"You made my sister cry," Johnny said, his voice menacing, his eyes flashing with anger. I shrugged, feigning more nonchalance than I felt.

"She made herself cry," my voice was hard and filled with defiance.

"Well I'm going to make you cry next Toretto," he told me before swinging his fists. And there I was rolling in the grass with Johnny Tran, fists flying with a crowd swelling around us. After about a minute I felt myself being lifted off him.

"What is going on here boys," my father demanded. I snuck a look at my dad's face which was livid. I knew I was going to get the fighting talk all over again. Not eager to answer I looked at Johnny who was looking firmly at the ground. Once he realized that neither of us would talk, my father turned and stalked off to the car which forced me to follow. As I passed Han he was doing his best not to laugh but failing miserably, the corners of his mouth turned up but his lips pressed tightly together. I was well on my way to hating him.

The following day I was outside cutting the lawn. Dad's punishment was chores and a ban from the garage for two weeks. I loved the garage so the punishment felt cruel and unusual. It didn't help that Vince and Letty rubbed my nose in it. They found the whole situation hilarious, the irony of someone beating on me for his sister's honor was classic. They knew I'd do the same for Mia in an instant. I reached the edge of the grass and made to turn the lawn mower around when someone tapped me on the shoulder. I turned around to face Han. My features went from surprised to furious in less than ten seconds. He had the grace to take a step back before speaking.

"Look, I came to apologize," he told me holding up his hands in front of him to keep me at bay.

"Get off my lawn," I growled menacingly.

"I didn't mean for my internal competition with you to escalate to a fist fight," he continued holding his ground. I frowned.

"Internal competition?"

Han nodded before adding, "I got Carmen. You got Joi." This was a game to him?

"Let me get this straight, are you keeping score or something?"

"No," he said slowly rolling his eyes. "I like Joi, Joi likes you, you like Carmen, I got even." I was floored. Han was jealous of me? Here I was, angry that he asked Carmen out, but he was angry because Joi must have turned him down first.

"You know," I said in a slow and measured voice, "I was going to ask Carmen out. It would have saved us all this," I told him gesturing towards my busted lip and the stationary lawn mower.

"Yeah, but this way was extremely entertaining," he grinned again. I took an involuntary step forward which he side stepped. "Besides, I would prefer not to be some chick's second stringer."

I got it. The fight left me. I rubbed the back of my head awkwardly. Han took this as a good sign, extending his arm for a hand shake. I returned the gesture. I turned to face the lawn mower eager to finish this chore before lunch. To my surprise, Han stayed and helped by raking up the clippings and pulling the more challenging weeds from the flower bed. From that point on Han and I made sure we'd never tread in each other's yard when it came to girls. We also became close friends. It just so happened that Han liked cars as much as the rest of the family did so Dad ended up with a fourth student to add to his rag-tag school of automotive arts.

Han has always been my most secretive friend. I feel like I know him yet he keeps a lot of himself hidden. I know that when I have something on my chest that I can't tell Vince, I can tell Han and he'll listen with the added bonus of keeping it quiet. He's got this calming temperament, rarely getting visibly angry or sad. He's pretty thoughtful too. When we first started to race we needed to upgrade our cars and he ended up supplying the money for the parts for not only his own car but for me and Vince too. He never asked us to help him and he was very careful to keep the rest of the family away from his work. Considering that work almost got him blown up, I can see how it was easy for him to make the decision to shoulder that burden alone. Sometimes I look at the cars that we race and I feel a twinge of regret that I may have forced my best friend into a life of crime with my obsession to win. But Han doesn't hold a grudge or place any blame on me so for his sake, I make it as easy as possible for him to slip away when he needs to do a job.

Han brought Daphne into the fold. They got together around the middle of junior year of high school. I never would have bet Han would be willing to date one girl exclusively but she was good for him. Han doesn't get around nearly as much as I do, but when he does it usually never goes past two nights. Vince, Han, and I were just getting our feet wet in the underground racing scene when he started taking her out. First it was to one of my Dad's races, and then it was out to dinner, followed by a foray into the street races. I gave her a chance when Vince felt wary to trust her with the secret. I just knew that if Han thought she was cool then we had nothing to worry about. She proved it time and time again, keeping our secret quiet from Letty and Mia until I was ready to let them in.

I realized that Daphne would be a permanent fixture in our lives one night at the races. The crowd was just getting together, doing the meet and greet while waiting for the main event to set up. Han was sitting on the hood of his car with Daphne behind him, her left leg carelessly hanging off the side of the car, her right flush against his side. They were sitting there casually, Han slowly eating his snack while Daphne surveyed the crowd. Letty, Vince, and I decided to check out some of the other cars before deciding on whether or not one of us would race tonight. As we completed a circuit, deciding to head back so a decision could be made, we noticed Han doing something completely out of character. He handed Daphne his snack. Han never let anyone touch his at-race snacks, not even Vince at his most menacing. He started stroking her leg absently before leaning back, reaching for her hair as he did so. I was even more surprised when he planted a long leisurely kiss on her lips before she handed his snack back to him. Han resumed eating while Daphne resumed perusing the crowd as if all of this hadn't happened. I wouldn't have believed it myself, the whole episode occurring in a three minute span.

Those two are never really demonstrative in public and I could understand why. The display was quick but sensual. I felt like a voyeur for witnessing it. I noticed that the three of us had stopped walking somewhere during that episode and I grinned as we started to move again. Letty's face looked as embarrassed as I felt, but only the gentle cracking of Vince's knuckles gave away his discomfort. When we joined them, no one mentioned what had just occurred, and I went on to win the race that night. Han never had to tell us but we knew that he really cared for Daphne. I'm glad she is part of our family. It's hard not to respect Daphne when she was so smart and helpful. When my Dad died she decided to spend her free time helping Mia run the café. I knew she was there now, watching over Mia and Letty, making sure that everyone kept up with school not just the businesses. And I knew she was there supporting Han, even when he was engaging in some dangerous business dealings.

Thinking about my family, my thoughts swirling their faces around in my mind, I slowly drifted off to sleep. Who could know how much life I would miss during this incarceration?


	2. 3 x 5

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Fast and the Furious, it's characters, or situations. I am making no money from this work of fiction. John Meyer wrote the song "3x5" which is where I got the title of this chapter.**

* * *

Chapter 2: 3 x 5

"Yo Dom!" a gruff voice called out to me across the weight room. I did my best to ignore the interruption, feeling my muscles strain as I pushed a hundred and fifty pounds up from my chest. I had begun to pump iron in an attempt to give myself something to concentrate on in here besides the fact that I couldn't drive. I missed driving.

"Yo Dom!" the voice called again, this time closer, standing where my knees were bent on the bench. I could feel him watching me, deciding when to address me again. My arms were getting tired but I kept pushing, tacking on more reps to this set. Ten. Eleven. Twelve. I did not want to talk to this guy. He cleared his throat.

"Dom," he said this time without the bass to back up his words. This gave me pause. I pushed the weight up one last time before placing it to rest on the arms of the bench. Taking a deep breath I sat up to look into his face, a scowl crossing my lips so he would know I was annoyed.

"Lucky," I said slowly in a direct tone that told him to get on with whatever he had found that was more important than my exercise regiment.

"I know you said you weren't into cliquing up," he started. I shook my head, immediately standing up. I knew exactly where he was going with this. I had spent the last six months protecting myself from jailhouse drama by remaining independent and neutral. I socialized but I didn't take sides in an argument and no one here could count me as a friend.

"Wait Dom, hear me out," Lucky said, urgency tinting his words. The urgency gave me pause. Lucky was new here, he'd gotten here five weeks ago and was doing his best to follow my example and remain outside the clique system. Lucky had been getting a lot of pressure in the last week though. Someone leaked that Lucky had plenty of money and powerful friends on the outside, friends he had been willing to go to jail for rather than snitch for a reduced sentence. But skinny Lucky is not a fighter so it's been slightly more difficult for him to resist the protection that cliquing up would bring.

"Look, that ain't for me," I sighed, working to keep myself calm. I did not want to jeopardize my rec privileges over a small argument. I've seen inmates' loose privileges over less, depending on who was on guard duty.

"I know how you feel man," he hesitated for a second then plunged ahead as if rushing this out would make it better for him, "but I need your help. I can't seem to get them to back off. If you could just flex some muscle on my behalf…"

"You know I won't, not even for you," I cut him off. He gave me a frustrated look. Before Lucky could come back at me with a different tact, I was saved from making a reply by a mail call.

Usually I wasn't expecting anything but today my ears perked up, listening for my name to be called. I'd finally broken down and sent Mia a letter five months after that first phone call. I was sadistically curious to know how life was progressing without me. I knew today would be the day I'd get a reply. Sure enough halfway through, I got my letter shoved at me. Excitedly I walked back to the seclusion of my cell, dismissing Lucky in a way that was direct but clean. He was the same way when he got his mail so I knew he wouldn't be angry about it later. I opened the letter, and immediately felt there was more in there than one or two pieces of paper. A few photos were wrapped up, tucked between the pages. I smiled. Only Mia.

_Dear Dom,_

_I'm glad that you finally wrote to me. I miss you so much. I thought about writing you a simple letter but then I got carried away…so think of this as more of a State of the Toretto Address._

_First, DT is doing well. Vince, Han, and Letty are working hard, keeping the shop running. Vince really manned up and took charge in there. He said the work is constant but not enough to keep him from constantly tuning the Maxima (see picture). _I paused to look at a picture of Vince's legs sticking out from under his car, the background familiar. Vince hated taking pictures so I know Mia must have caught him unaware.

_Daphne has been working the books over there and I am so grateful. Don't be offended but Dad wasn't very good at keeping the records. _I could agree but to be fair, I wasn't much better. _Sometimes she comes over with a raging headache but she says that DT is remaining financially solvent. Well, they're keeping the lights on at any rate considering we are still using Dad's system for salaries. Han, Letty, and Vince haven't made any mention of being paid or wanting to be paid but I approached Han about it. He says that none of them care about that. They didn't get paid in money before so they aren't beat about it now. Besides, Letty is using the perks of the job to work on her Silva. She also said something about engines and ripping apart blocks but I didn't understand (see picture). _I shuffled the pictures to see Letty standing by the side of her car, her hair in a messy ponytail, sweaty, holding a wrench, and frowning. After studying her face for a while, I began to peruse the rest of the photo which made me grin. She was standing next to the car but the hood was up. The engine was prepped for mounting in front of the car along with an assortment of nuts, bolts, and parts. 'Geez us,' I laughed to myself. By the time she finishes the car it will be worth more than a year's salary anyway.

_The café is doing well too (see picture)._There was a picture of my sister, a large smile on her face, behind the counter at Toretto's Café. _I only had one kid try and rip us off. I don't think the kid realized that Vince knew us so well otherwise he may have thought twice before trying to make off with some stolen groceries. As it was, Vince was already at the café having lunch and had knocked the kid into next Tuesday before he could run around the corner. I'm just grateful that the kid seemed to learn his lesson. At any rate, word must have spread because I don't have any real problems anymore. Vince comes to watch me open, check on me mid-shift, and watch me close just to make sure though. And I can't get anyone else to help me out over here except for Daphne. Letty looks at me as if she would rather rip off her arm then spend a whole afternoon here. And I don't even bother Han with it. He's too busy doing whatever it is that he does when he's not at DT._

_Oh man, the house. Dom it's so weird to live here without you. I have kept up the tradition of decorating the house for every major holiday (see pictures)_. I paused again to look at shots of the house decorated for Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years, Valentine's Day, and now St. Patrick's. It seems Mia made sure to capture someone doing something foolish in each one. For Halloween Vince was asleep on the couch, blissfully unaware that two pumpkins were perched on the back of the couch with a fishing line near his pocket. Mia wrote on the back 'robbery in progress'. Thanksgiving was a candid shot of Letty 'sneaking' a piece of cake while Vince was keeping Mia occupied in holding a serving plate for the slices of turkey he was cutting. Christmas had two pictures: the first was a picture of Han and Vince struggling to carry in a live tree and the second showed the tree completely decorated with all of them smiling at the camera. New Years there was a picture of Han and Daphne asleep on the couch while Letty was trying not to laugh out loud as she pointed at a large clock that read ten o'clock. Letty was in the one for Valentine's Day too. She was pointing a bow at Vince's chest. Vince's face was hilarious to me, his mouth wide open in horror, hands up as he was clearly backing away. Whoever had taken the picture was laughing so hard that it was slightly blurry. The last one taken on St. Patrick's day showed Mia again, this time in full green from head to toe, sitting on the steps to the house which had green streamers and clovers stuck to every door and window visible. Bracing myself I continued to read.

_I am glad that Letty moved in. It's good to have a constant person in the house with me. She sleeps in your room. I told her you wouldn't mind and that you were probably going to fantasize, or whatever it is guys do, about her being in that bed. She made me include a picture of her lying in your bed to counter that (see picture)._ Sure enough there was a picture of Letty in my bed but she had on the craziest combination of clothes I had ever seen. She was in a pair of sweats so baggy that clearly belonged to me, and a top so holey and grease stained I knew it must be one of her retired work ones. Her hair was a mess stuffed under a red baseball cap that I knew belonged to Vince at one point. What little I could see of her right foot was covered in fluffy pink socks. It was the most sexless outfit she could wear which would render me unable to come up with any kind of a decent fantasy about her in that bed. She was such a jerk. _She says she likes living with me too but the house is too quiet. She's so used to having her whole family over all the time. This is not to say that we don't ever have company. Vince sometimes spends the night in his room that Dad made for him which has been more often than not lately. I think he is transitioning to staying in that basement on a more permanent basis since I make dinner almost every night. Daphne spends time over here too and she alternates the cooking with me but I haven't convinced her to start sleeping here full time. I think her parents are giving her enough grief for spending as much time as she does immersed in everything Toretto. _

_Han said that you told us they could all live there but Han keeps such strange hours. Even if he was staying here full time I probably wouldn't notice. He's been contributing to the household effort. He told me not to worry about soap or food, which he would help provide for the house since there were a lot more mouths eating dinner here and watching TV. True to his word, I've been getting a thousand dollars in regular intervals from him which I've used to keep the lights on and food in the fridge. I'm curious about how he makes his money but if anyone else knows, they're not saying. I know you'd tell me to mind my own business but I have to ask: Do you know what Han is earning his cash these days? _Yes._ Would you tell me?_ Never.

_Hey Dom, don't worry about anything. Letty and I are still going to school. Vince had to strong arm Letty in the beginning. She was skipping a lot of class to work at DT. I have to admit she was pretty sneaky about it too: going there for lunch and "forgetting" about afternoon classes, "mixing" up her days and thinking its Saturday instead of Tuesday, and things like that. Vince finally told her he'd ban her from the garage if she kept it up so she's been making it to school consistently. I am surprised he's being such a stickler about it considering he was never too keen on the rules. I guess that's what happens when you're about to graduate. Han, Vince, and Daphne are almost done. It's going to be strange when they no longer have to go school. Finally my lunch will be safe!_

_Speaking of lunch and dinner, Vince said that he and Han are sending you money. Do you want me to send you some too? Do you have enough socks? _I had to laugh at that. _Dom, seriously don't worry about us. We're resilient. Hope to hear from you soon._

_Love,_

_Mia_

I carefully folder her letter taking care to wrap the pictures inside before I stashed it for safekeeping. I was glad to know that they were adjusting without me. I know that Mia wasn't telling me about the sad stuff, only the good parts to keep me from worrying. But I wasn't going to dwell on the fact that just as much bad was happening out there as good. Tonight I was going to pretend that everything was great. I closed my eyes, the pictures flashing across my memory. Han. Vince. Daphne. Mia. And Letty. Letty in those awful pink socks and ridiculously ill fitting clothes. I grinned to myself. Then another picture of her flashed in my mind. It was the one where she was standing in the garage, sweaty amongst her pile of parts; hmm…I might end up fantasizing about her after all.


	3. Chrysalis

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Fast and the Furious, it's characters, or situations. I am making no money from this work of fiction.**

* * *

Chapter 3: Chrysalis

_Daphne's pregnant. Han's actually excited that he's procreating (see picture). _I was stunned. I couldn't believe I was reading this. Quickly I shuffled through the latest set of pictures Mia sent me to find one of Daphne, her belly distended, Letty looking horrified next to her. Letty's hand was on Daphne's stomach. I could only guess that the baby must have kicked and freaked her out. What the hell was going on at home? I made the decision in an instant to call them. Mia and I had written back and forth several times since my first letter last March. How could a year change everything so fast? Looking at the picture, Daphne looked really pregnant. Why didn't Mia tell me in her last letter in November?

My mind started racing, questions popping up at every turn. I felt the slow burn of anger well inside of me even though I knew my face would outwardly show nothing but collected calm. _They were keeping things from me._ Finally I felt my eyes narrow as I read the passage once again. I couldn't even finish the letter without sorting this out first. Why would they need to keep things from me, especially something as life altering as a kid?

Later that evening I decided to take my turn at the phones. I gave my name then waited impatiently as the mechanical voice requested my recipient receive the phone charges. I was hoping to hear Mia's voice first but I wasn't sad that I got Vince instead.

"Yo man, you had time to read Mia's novel?" he asked, his tone teasing and light.

"Hell no. Daphne's knocked up?" I sounded incredulous. I had meant to sound calm and collected but my tightly wound nerves messed it up. Vince started laughing uncontrollably. He was still laughing as he passed the phone to Mia.

"Hi Dom! How are…" Mia began, interest lacing her voice but I cut her off.

"Why didn't you tell me in November about the baby?" I accused. I didn't want to come out sounding childish by asking why they kept it a secret for so long.

"What do you mean?" I could hear her brain working overtime to figure out what I meant, "Oh that."

"_Oh that_, my ass!"

"Well _I_ didn't do it…" I cut her off. I knew she didn't mean to omit information. This meant that she didn't know it before.

"Sorry Mia. I'm just in shock. I miss you," I told her, the edge seeping out of my voice.

"I miss you lots so write me soon."

"I love you Mia. Don't get pregnant," I warned, suddenly thinking about how she might be having sex too. Mia was eighteen now and, oh God, probably dating guys. I started to fume again.

"I love you too," she said in a long suffering kind of way.

"Later Mia."

"Bye," she told me, laughter creeping back into her voice. I could tell that she would be interested to see if I'd blow up at anyone else. She'd heard the edge sneak back into my voice. I heard the air rush past as she passed the phone on.

"Hiya Dom," Letty drawled. She sounded unaffected, like I called everyday. I frowned, hoping that her feelings hadn't changed for me.

"So, I feel like making babies with you when I get out," I started, working to sound as unaffected as she sounded. I wondered if the statement would catch her off guard.

"Yeah, is that right?" then she burst into laughter. I loved her laugh; it made me shiver and think of sex.

"But you can't jump like you did in that picture," I laughed back, remembering her comical expression. I wanted to flirt, not get frustrated.

"Whatever man that's not cool."

"What? It was an innocent observation."

"I'll bet," she said dryly. It made it grin.

"At the rate they're going," I told her, referring to Han and Daphne, "we'll have to play catch up when I get home."

"Uh huh," Letty replied noncommittally. I couldn't tell if that was a 'yes' or 'no'. It was probably more like a 'whatever man'. Letty was eighteen now too and the last thing on her mind was having babies.

"You don't think so?" I wondered when Letty had learned to flirt like this. She was usually either closed or open. She never kept me guessing like this before and it was kind of a turn-on.

"When you get home you better be ready to put your money where your mouth is," she demanded saucily.

"I plan to put my mouth a lot of places so you better be ready," I sassed back, unable to help myself. I must have embarrassed her.

"Bye Dom," she told me shyly, giving the phone away before I could even say goodbye in return. Finally I got a voice on the phone that could answer my questions. Thankfully for her, the anger and confusion that was simmering before I started this phone call had dissipated after my talks with Mia and Letty.

"Hi, how are…"

"Daphne, are you having Han's baby?" I cut her off quickly.

"What?" she asked stunned. I had caught her off guard.

"It is Han's baby right?" I rephrased grinning.

"Yes of course it is!" she exclaimed, but I could hear her smiling.

"Just checking. The baby bug is not contagious though."

"Yeah, thankfully it's not catching."

"I am going to tease the hell out of Han for years," I said gleefully. I was starting to find the whole situation highly entertaining.

"I bet you are," she said wryly.

"Have you come up with any names yet?"

"No, we haven't yet but I was thinking something asexual like Jessie or Taylor." This made me grin. I knew Han would have a differing opinion about those names.

"So could you keep me in the loop from now on?" I asked referring to their omission from my letter in November. I was pleased I didn't sound accusatory, just gruff.

"We'll definitely keep you posted."

"Ok then. Stay out of any more trouble."

"Yeah, you too, bye."

"Dom," Han said in his cavalier voice. I could strangle him cheerfully for his nonchalance.

"Han," I growled.

"Hurry up and get to the punch line, I want to laugh too," he demanded, his voice still light with laughter. That was Han, never getting too bent out of shape.

"Ah you got me, are you seriously having a kid man?" I knew I sounded surprised. Really I was humbled that something so adult would happen while I was away. I was starting to feel jealous that I was missing out on life.

"Either that or Daph swallowed a Hyundai," we both laughed. I could hear the faint contact of flesh against flesh, alerting me that she must have hit him.

"Why didn't that news make the last letter," I queried. Someone was going to give me a straight answer about that.

"_I _didn't even know till December so…" The pieces fell into place. No one had known before then. I felt the tension I hadn't realized I had drop from my shoulders. I don't know why I should feel so tense about something I had no control over. I didn't like the feeling of being ignored because I was here and they were all together. I didn't want them to forget about me.

"Yeah well congrats man. Listen, are you going to throw a party for Letty and Mia when they graduate?" I remembered the picture Mia had sent of Vince and Han at graduation, both of them cheesing for the camera in their caps and gowns. I also remembered the ten or so pictures of the graduation party that had spilled from the house into the back yard, complete with familiar faces from the race scene. I kept the picture of Letty dancing on the coffee table in my sock drawer, determined to use it as a bargaining chip for something I may need later in our relationship.

"That's the plan."

"Ok then. I'll need you to do me a favor but I'll tell you about it later. Can you put Vince back on?" I started to rush. The guard was giving the signal that we needed to start wrapping the conversations up.

"Yeah, later Dom."

"Yeah what you need brother?" Vince asked, poised to listen.

"Keep an extra eye on Mia and Letty for me. I don't want them to screw around and not graduate. And the baby is welcome at the house too. I'm coming home in six months but make sure that you keep me informed better in the future, got that?"

"Yeah I got it, bye Dom," he told me in his no-nonsense voice. He would continue to stand in for me while I was here. On that note, I disconnected the call then made my way back to my cell. My brain was swimming. In my obsession to find out why they were hiding things from me, I didn't ask about anything else: not the garage, not the races, not my car, not the charger…Well I wouldn't ask about the charger anyway. I didn't want to feel the hysterical panic in my chest when I thought about the reason I was here instead of at home. Instead I lay on my bunk, careful to remember the place where I stopped reading Mia's letter, vowing to pick it up to continue tomorrow when I wasn't so full of thoughts. I fell into a restless sleep.

* * *

_Six Months Later_

"It kind of makes you wonder what else you didn't know, ya know." Lucky babbled on, oblivious to the fact that I was only paying half attention to what he was saying. We were still on speaking terms, even though I forced him to confront his own attackers when he first arrived. He got beaten pretty badly but it earned him enough respect to be left alone. Plus I started to help him exercise so he could build his muscle mass, making his punches sting a bit more than they used to. We were in the gym again and I was leaving tomorrow. Seven. Eight. Nine. I guess I should really take time and appreciate the fact that this may be our last conversation. Ten. I placed the weight back on the metal arms before sitting up.

"I don't know," I said honestly. I didn't really remember what we were talking about to be honest. Lucky looked at me shrewdly.

"You're saying if you were in my shoes you would want your girlfriend to tell you the truth about how often she's cheated? You wouldn't want your _friends_ to tell you they were sampling the goods?" Oh yeah. The conversation flooded back to me. Lucky found out last night that his girlfriend was sleeping with his boss, the bosses' son, and a few other random characters. I remembered some line about "honor amongst thieves" being thrown out earlier in his tirade. I felt bad for Lucky considering he'd continued to pay the rent on his well furnished apartment for her and foot her hefty credit card bills, all while still in jail. I didn't have an answer for him. I couldn't picture myself in a situation like that. I didn't want to picture myself in a situation like that with Letty at all. I'd grown possessive of my family while I was here and I couldn't think of anything worse than being betrayed by them, especially now that we were so close to being reunited.

"It just goes to show you that you've got to watch who you trust," Lucky continued, apparently not needing my response to continue venting.

"Lucky, I'm going to miss you," I told him suddenly. The thought had come from out of the place in my heart that had an understanding of how I had changed by being here.

Two years had seen me chrysalis from boy to man. At twenty I was physically stronger than I had ever been. I had muscle on top of muscle. I'd shaved my head so I was bald. My voice was deeper, rougher, sounding as if I rarely used it. Not only was I physically different but the changes extended to my temperament. I got angry easier, but I was guarded when it came to my emotions. I was better at holding emotions in, keeping the anger and agony out of my features; however the eyes could subtly give me away. I was eager to take charge of my responsibilities, the obligations that I had left behind in a fit of recklessness. I now had an understanding of what recklessness could cost: freedom, family, control, guilt. I felt guilty all the time: for leaving Mia without her biological family, for forcing Vince to be in charge, for making Han believe he had to take care of us financially, for testing Letty's loyalty and love with my absence. I was ready to become the man my family needed me to be. And I was going to start tomorrow.

I received a piercing look from Lucky before he pulled out his business card and handed it to me. Only Lucky would keep something as normal as a business card in this place. I put it in my pocket. We didn't need to say more. I extended my hand and he shook it. Lucky was getting out of here in another year or so. He's the only person I would want to contact outside of this place. There would be no other sentiment of goodbye.

Releasing his hand I walked toward my bunk to clean up the last of my personal effects. I had to turn them in to the guard for inspection before I could take them with me. I had a small box filled with the letters Mia had written, the makeshift photo album I'd glued together to keep all of the photo's she'd taken, the bible Mia had sent to me in her attempt at religious reform. It was odd how she had filtered into this place that I had desperately wanted to keep her out of. I also had a garbage bag filled to the brim with socks, underwear, soap, and lotions. After I brushed my teeth in the morning I was going to throw the tooth brush and paste away too. I didn't want to keep anything from here. I'd written Mia and included instructions for Vince in July. Vince had sent new clothes to me to wear home: they were waiting for me to put on tomorrow before I met with the committee that would release me.

Completing the packing left me time to fantasize about the return home. I hadn't talked to anyone since my phone call in March. I hadn't received a letter from Mia either. I sighed. Mia probably thought she would need plenty to occupy my time. I imagined her squirreling away the pictures of her and Letty at graduation, of Han and the new baby, of what she had done to decorate for Easter and the Fourth of July. I wouldn't ruin her fun. I'd forgive her for holding on to six months worth of memories that we could review together.

But all of those memories would have to wait until I saw the garage. I planned to mark my return to the world with a trip to the place where I had left it. I needed to see for myself that DT was still standing, to stand on the space across the street where I had ruined a man's life, where I had crippled mine. Life would restart for me in that place then I would go home to face the rest of my family. I'd let Mia tell their stories, tuning me up so I could perform at their level. I would work on my car expecting it would need lots of tuning to get it back in racing order. I was definitely going to need to start racing again. My legs trembled in anticipation of shifting again, my arms tensed imaging the feel of the wheel and the shift knob. Yeah, I needed to get my car in racing order as soon as possible. I let my mind wander over the upgrades I might make. New lights? Better body kit? A fresh coat of paint? Lights for the chassis?

Thinking about what I would do to my car led me to thinking about the charger again. I knew it was waiting for me in the garage at the house. Dad's personal space. The space where he taught me, Vince, Letty and Han how to change the oil, fix a carburetor, replace fried piston rings. The sadness that accompanied thoughts about the charger or my father came rushing back, threatening to overwhelm me. I wished I had the strength to walk in that place and not break down. Would I ever have the courage to recreate the beast that had been the place my father had spent his final moments? Did I want to put together an object that scared me more than being in prison did?

Forcing myself to abandon all the what-ifs I finally let sleep overcome me, my brain repeating that I would be going home tomorrow, vowing that I would rather die than to return to prison ever again.


	4. Discord

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Fast and the Furious, it's characters or situations. I don't have any stake in any of the car companies for that matter. Don't sue me.**

* * *

**Chapter 4: Discord**

I walked purposefully keeping my stride long, the gait even and assured. Inside I felt like I could easily float into the sky which seemed endless after my confinement. I refused to look back at the guards or the gates that I knew were behind me. It was symbolic. I was leaving that all behind. Instead I looked forward, letting my gaze sweep the parking lot before it landed on a car I knew only too well. Grinning I approached the blue Maxima, making out the figure slumped in the driver's seat clearly taking a nap. Two years had made him look more menacing than I would have believed. His face was slack at the moment but I could tell from the faint lines in his forehead that he spent more time scowling than smiling. He was sporting the stubble of more than a five o'clock shadow but much less than a full grown beard on his jaw. His hair was also cut short but stuck out in an artful carelessness. To top it all off I could see a white bandage circling his exposed forearm. My shadow at the window startled him into waking, his face going from slack to scowl to excitement in three seconds. Without hesitation, Vince threw open the door and embraced me.

"How ya' doin' brotha?" Vince asked me, patting my back before releasing me.

"Much better now that I'm out," I replied, heading swiftly to the passenger side of the car and wrenching the door open. Vince frowned at me then fired up the Maxima. We were on our way within moments. It wasn't until we hit the 101 going south that I breathed a sigh of relief, letting the tension drain out of me. I finally let myself believe that this was not a mistake. I was free, no guards were going to come looking for me. I had truly been released from confinement. I watched the scenery taking in the vibrant colors of fall, the fashionable new colors of cars buzzing in the opposite direction, the familiar shapes of the speed limit signs, the speedometer needle reflecting Vince's disregard for those limits. I felt Vince glance at me then turn away.

"What?" I asked my voice so deep now that it seemed angrier than I felt.

"That all you got?" he asked his gaze shifting quickly to the small shopping bag I had on my lap. In my haste to see all the changes, I'd forgotten to put the bag down.

"Yeah. I'm not bringin' that place home," I told him, shifting the bag to my feet. I turned back to stare at the cars. Ford. Honda. Subaru. Ford. Chevy. Ford. "Lots of domestics out today," I added conversationally. I could feel Vince's grin.

"About that…"he hesitated. I could tell he was gearing up to tell me something he thought I might not like. I felt myself tensing. Was he going to talk about the charger? "Dom, a lot happened in April…" I waited patiently for him to get to the point. I heard him sigh.

"I can tell," I said dryly. I finally shifted my gaze to his bandaged forearm again. He gave me a sideways glance then noticed where I was staring.

"What that?" he sounded incredulous. "Nah, this is just another tattoo. I'm strictly talking about the garage."

"What about the garage?" There was an edge to my voice. What was wrong with my father's garage?

"Business was heavy so we hired two guys to help," he admitted, a telltale sniff telling me he was flexing his muscles spoiling for a fight.

"Do I know 'em?" I was trepidatious about two random guys in my garage. What was Vince thinking?

"Nah, but I checked them out. They're good Dom."

"So you brought some random guys into DT?" I felt Vince getting angrier beside me.

"They're legit Dom. Jesse's too innocent to be a threat and Leon, well…" he tapered off again, a tight grin on his face, "you might remember Leon."

"Oh yeah?" My curiosity was peaked.

"Leon's Skyline used to sit in third at races," Vince replied. I tried to picture it but the whole racing scene was stuck in a time which seemed so far away in my memory.

"They at the garage today?"

"Yeah," he said, wary again.

"Fine. I'll check them out first," I told him, turning to look out the window again, then added as an afterthought, "you can relax Vince."

We rode in silence for another half an hour before he spoke again. "A lot of shit has changed, Dom."

"I figured that." I let the bitterness that statement cost me come out. Vince wouldn't judge. After five minutes I prodded, "you gonna tell me or…"

"Nah. I warned you." Vince and I rode in silence for the rest of the ride, each of us sure that he wouldn't say anything else. I let my anticipation build as the miles between me and the garage decreased. I was surprised I didn't jump out of the car as it slowed to pull into DT's driveway. Oh it felt good to be home.

Walking in felt familiar. Music was wafting from a radio in the corner, tools were clinking, and the smell of oil hit me in the face. Three cars were in progress but there were only two sets of people tinkering. A pair of legs stuck out from under a Toyota. They looked too short and skinny to be anyone's but Letty's which made me want to grin. But I wouldn't let the grin show on my face. I needed to assess the two guys I assumed were Leon and Jesse who were tooling around under the hood of a Saturn. They were so engrossed in their discussion that I was able to walk up silently behind them.

"…I don't know why this kid even bothers," the mousy extremely skinny kid said, his tone almost depressed.

"God, this is painful," the other more toned guy agreed, his inconspicuous muscles sticking out from a basketball jersey.

I peeked over their shoulders to see the makings of a ricer and immediately pinched the bridge of my nose. I understood the appeal to God. What would possess someone to do this to a Saturn?

"Well that's a mess," I groaned out. The two guys turned around, the skinny kid immediately getting jumpy and nervous. I heard the creeper sliding from under the Toyota but I refused to acknowledge it. Business first.

"Da…Da…Da…Da…uh…Dominic?" the kid sputtered. I gave one nod to show my assent.

"And who are you?" I asked crossing my arms.

"Uh…ah… ah... ah.. ah," the kid stuttered, his incoherent words coming faster and more panicked as he struggled to get his name out.

"His name's Jesse and I'm Leon," Leon told me, sticking his hand out for a shake. I raised my right eyebrow.

"And what are you doin' in my garage?" Leon laughed.

"Workin' dawg. You sizin' us up?" He was smiling earnestly now. Jesse was looking nervously between Leon and me, trying to gauge what his panic level should be. I took a moment to assess the question. I heard the crack of Vince's knuckles. He was stretching again, prepping for the fight he thought we'd staved off earlier in the car. I wondered if we might fight not because I was angry with his decision but because he was offended that I was questioning the decision he _had_ to make while I was gone. I decided to go easy. If Vince, who trusted very little, vouched for them then I wouldn't make it an issue. I shook the proffered hand and the tension in the garage released.

"Nah." I pinched the bridge of my nose again and focused my concerned at the Saturn. "So what is this?" My comment sent Leon's eyes heavenward. Jesse turned back to the task at hand and started rattling off specs and the customer's concerns. I was impressed by his knowledge and the fact that talking about engines had changed him into a more confident and calm person. Vince came over to view what Jesse was describing before rolling his eyes too.

"What?" I asked Vince. I knew exactly what but I wanted someone to say it out loud.

"What is this?" Vince asked appalled.

"Well when we finish it will have a better fuel management system and nitrous," Jesse replied innocently.

"But that won't change the fact that it's in this…this…" Vince waved his hand agitatedly in the vicinity of the car.

"Monstrosity," Leon supplied stuck somewhere between distress and sadness. I agreed. What sort of misguided soul would spend the time modifying a Saturn?

"Are we going to finish working or can we leave early since the boss is back?" a sarcastic voice sounded from the vicinity of the Toyota. We turned our heads to see Letty standing carelessly next to a large rolling toolbox. Her hair was pulled into a messy ponytail. Her arms and face were covered in sweat and grease. Her expression gave nothing away like this was another day in the garage and our conversation was disturbing her work.

"You finish that Toyota?" I asked coolly. If she was going to act as if nothing was out of place then I wouldn't give her the satisfaction of knowing I missed her.

"Yeah, I'd already done the brakes and I finished the oil while you were interrogating Leon."

"Then you're free to go." Letty immediately moved to the sink to scrub up, grabbed her jacket, and rolled out. My temper rose slightly.

"Yo, you ready to go?" Vince asked me to cover up the awkward moment. He had warned me that the State of the Toretto Union would be different. I wished someone would just give me the whole address instead of letting me find out piecemeal. I nodded my assent then stood back to watch Vince, Leon, and Jesse close up shop for the night. Half an hour later Vince and I pulled up to the café. I exited the Maxima, keeping my eyes trained on the woman I knew to be my sister.

Mia had changed. She no longer could be considered the little girl who had taken care of me and my father up until two years ago. Her hair was longer, her gait more purposeful, her smile wiser and haunted. She made it around the corner to launch into my arms by the magazine rack. I picked her up, our hug conveying the excitement of finally being face to face for the first time in twenty-four months. I felt her tears on my cheek seconds before she whispered in my ear, "oh Dom, don't let go. Don't let go." The tortured relief in her voice scared me.

"What's wrong baby girl? I'm here now," I whispered to the best of my ability. My voice was much deeper than when I left and I rarely spoke to people in prison so I was still unused to the modulation necessary for a true whisper. My question sent her into a painful sob. The way she was crying was causing me physical pain because I knew I was partly to blame for her distress. Still holding her I carried her to one of the stools at the counter, taking care to set her down before I gently pulled back. Around me I could hear Vince starting pull the chairs and tables in, prepping to close the café.

"Oh Dom I couldn't write you anymore after what happened in April," she started, gulping in spurts of air. My feeling of unease intensified. I didn't think she was talking about Leon and Jesse coming to work at DT's. I rubbed her knee, bending over to look into her soggy eyes.

"What happened in April?" She started crying harder. Meanwhile Vince had shut the big metal door and was locking it, before moving to lock the side doors. I was surprised by the level of helpfulness Vince was putting in here. Then I remembered. "Where's Daphne? I thought she was helping you out over here?"

Vince froze for a second then he came to stand behind Mia. Mia went back to sobbing uncontrollably. Vince patted her shoulder stiffly until she got herself under enough control to stutter out, "Daphne died Dom. She and the baby died."

The floor underneath me felt like it was giving away. "I…" I didn't know what to say. _'What happened?'_surfaced first but the question was irrelevant considering the answer wouldn't bring her back. The news had my mind blown. I felt dizzy. "Let's go home Mia," I croaked out, my thoughts swirling around my last conversation with Daphne. She'd been so giddy about the baby that even I had gotten excited about the prospect of being an uncle. My shocked mind recognized that if I was feeling loss and hurt then Han, Daphne boyfriend and the father of her child, would be feeling even worse. This helped me tamp down on the bitter regret feelings I was having for not being here. This wasn't about me. Vince helped Mia into the Maxima and the three of us rode in silence back to the house.

Pulling into the driveway was not how I envisioned it last night. Much had changed a mere 148 miles from Lompoc. I was tense and on edge. What emotional state would I find my best friend in? Han's absence from the garage hadn't been telling considering he had other obligations that often had taken him away from the routines and rituals the rest of us observed. Mia was drained of tears by the time we walked in the house. She sat on the couch next to Letty who had showered since our reunion at the garage. Vince took the spot next to Letty's right side. I was feeling confrontational enough to sit on the coffee table but I tapped into my patience and sat in an arm chair instead. Bracing my arms on my legs I raised my head to look at the faces of my family. Letty's indifferent face was bothering me. Didn't she care if I was home or not?

"So…" I started but Letty cut me off.

"…Mia told you about Daph," she stated, a frown of distaste marring her face as she looked at Mia's red rimmed eyes. I nodded. Her attitude was starting to make me feel sick. Was Letty going to blame me for not being here to help them through the loss of a member of this family? Was she disgusted enough with me that she didn't want to be with me anymore? I could play indifferent too.

"Han home?"

"Probably. He is sixteen hours behind us."

"Huh?" This made Letty sigh.

"Han left for Tokyo right after Daph's funeral." My mouth fell open. Han _left_ L.A. The final pictures of what should be in my makeshift photo album took form in my mind: Han, Letty, Vince, and Mia dressed in black at Daphne's funeral; Mia and Letty graduating with weary faces; a subdued Fourth of July spent in the empty back yard; and Han missing from every other picture. My head started to hurt. I sat in that chair for two hours after Letty's announcement, but the others moved to the fringes. Mia made dinner. Letty ran upstairs and Vince faded to another part of the house. We only got back together to eat the meal Mia put in front of us.

Afterwards I didn't try to front that I wanted anything other than solitude and time to think. I trudged upstairs to my bedroom stopping just inside the doorway to take inventory of this space too. I knew that Letty had been sleeping here but I was surprised that there were minimal changes to the space. In fact, until I opened one of my drawers and pulled out a black lacy thong, I wouldn't have though she was staying in here at all. I'd paused in my inventory to get a good look at her thong when she walked in. Our eyes met and she smirked.

"You want your room back?"

"Why, you scared to share my room with me?" I countered. Her attitude was really rankling my nerves. I wasn't up for any more surprises today.

Letty ran her tongue over her upper teeth, and looked up at me without moving her face. The movement was filled with arrogance. "No."

"Then no." I put her underwear back in the drawer then left the room to take a shower. When I returned Letty was sitting in the bed, the covers pulled back, in a pair of my boxers and one of those girly spaghetti strapped tank tops. Her hair was still pulled back into a low ponytail at the nape of her neck. I closed the door, turned off the light and took the familiar steps to the bed, hearing the groan of the springs as I lay down. At last, something familiar. I pulled the covers over both of us and we lay there on our backs, each occupying separate space. I exhaled loudly then put my arms behind my head. Here I was, practically naked with the girl I loved, and we were acting like we needed to make space for the universe between us. I got ready for my mind to wander like it did in prison.

"Dom?" Letty whispered, her voice sounding little and scared. My skin started to crawl again. I really couldn't take any more bad news tonight. Letty didn't do vulnerability and her non-committal attitude all day had made me think she didn't want nor need me back. I rolled to my right side to look through the darkness to her body outlined by the moonlight. The movement was all she needed before she turned to snuggle my chest. I felt the warmth of her tears though she didn't sob like my sister had. I rolled onto my back again, my arms bringing Letty with me so she could settle her head on my shoulder and continue to cry. The silent tears fell for less than five minutes. When she made to wipe them away, I did that for her. I let my hands rub themselves up and down her arm and back, soothing her to sleep even though I was now wide awake.

My homecoming had been stressful for them. They'd had life altering details to share and I could feel the discordant notes settling in my chest. Vince had managed the garage, house, store, and family better than I had done. Then again, he had two years more practice than that one week following my father's funeral. I envied how easy it was for him to be in command of this life and vowed to do my best to keep things running as smoothly as he had been. Mia'd lost two more family members which could easily be unraveling her sense of stability and security. I'd have to work hard to build that trust for her. I didn't want her thinking that she should expect to lose members of her family tragically on a regular basis. I would fill in the gap of the ones she missed. And Letty. She probably hadn't been this open with anyone ever. Letty'd been forced to be strong for Mia for far too long, her hurts piling up with no outlet to release them. I was eager to relieve the burdens from her shoulders that forced her to maintain a scorching personality to keep others far away from her feelings of hopelessness and vulnerability.

I finally fell asleep at three a.m. with plans to be as good a head of the family as my father had been, to include calling Han and persuading him to come back.


	5. Corrosive

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Fast and the Furious.**

* * *

**Chapter 5: Corrosive**

"Dom, what do you want me to do with this?" Mia asked me, waving a clipboard with invoices in front of my face. This was an escalation from the previous three times she'd asked me that question in the last ten minutes. I straightened up from the Cadillac I was replacing the filters on and slowly rolled my head to relieve the tension in my neck.

"I don't know Mia," I said evenly turning to face her head on. I wiped my hands on a rag I had lying about. She shoved the clipboard in my hands.

"Well you have to do something." I frowned.

"Isn't that why I brought you here?" If she wasn't able to make sense of these invoices, bills, and earning statements then I definitely wasn't going to be able to do it. Correction. I didn't _want_ to devote the time needed to make sense of what the garage was doing administratively. Mia smacked the clipboard which pushed it towards my chest. My eyes narrowed.

"Read what I circled Dominic." I skimmed down the page on top, my eyes resting on a figure circled in red. Was that a negative sign? My eyes widened and I heaved in a large breath. Apparently the increase in business wasn't covering much more than the supply of parts for our client jobs and the utilities. I was thankful that the businesses and the house were mortgage free.

"Let's go talk in the office," I told her, turning to enter the place I refused to enter unless absolutely necessary. That meant I had been in this office twice since I'd been home, both times to scribe checks to cover Leon and Jesse's salaries. The desk was much neater than the last time I'd seen it. Mia had separated all of the paperwork into neat piles, the better to catch the books up to date. The filing cabinet was open with folders ready to receive the paper trail that was waiting for her to decide how she wanted to keep things organized. I sat in the swivel chair that was in front of the computer which left Mia the chair next to the desk after she closed the door. "So I over-drafted the garage account last month?"

"No Dom. That figure is what will be left this month once you pay Leon, Jesse, and the supplier for specialty parts for the fam…for erm uh…for all of our…" Mia faltered. She didn't seem to know what to call our quasi family. Leon and Jesse had grown on me since I had come home but I didn't necessarily consider them family yet.

"The team?" I supplied for her. That seemed like the best label for what we were. Not quite family, not exactly casual acquaintances either. She nodded.

"Yeah, specialty parts for the team." I raked my hand over my bald head, exhaling a frustrated sigh.

"Aside from that though, we're breaking even right?"

"Here? Just barely. But look at the big picture Dom," she leaned over and flipped to the second page where another figure was circled. At least this one wasn't negative, but it was very low. "The café is barely making it too and I'm there full time now." I looked at the numbers again then flipped to the page underneath and pinched the bridge of my nose.

"What is this?"

"The household expenses Dom." The number circled there was ridiculous. I saw in the margins dates and little numbers. Second, Third, Second, Second.

"Mia, what does this stuff mean?" I asked referring to her notes.

"What notice we're on and when they plan to cut off those services. Dom, the lights are on their third notice. They'll turn them off in ten days." Mia looked stressed. How did they survive while I was gone? I thought Mia had been paying the bills with the household account. Why hadn't she told me?

"How did things get like this?" I accused her. She looked into my eyes sharply, her temper flaring.

"Are you asking how _we_ got in this mess or how _I_ got us into this mess?" she said in a deadly low voice. It caught me off guard she sounded so much like Letty. It rankled.

"Watch your tone with me."

"No Dom," she yelled at me, "you watch your _tone_ with me. If you weren't so busy ignoring _your_ responsibilities," she waved to the stacks of paper sitting on the desk, "you'd realize that you can't fund mods on everyone's cars, and the charger, and pay salaries, and pay the bills on the nonexistent profit you're pulling in here," she was standing over me now. I resisted the urge to push the chair back.

"Papa did it," I defended.

"Papa's racing income paid for a lot of that," she countered.

"Well Vince did it," I tried again, desperate to win the battle. I didn't want this to be my fault. I also didn't want to physically push Mia out of my face either but her hostile posture was raising my temper.

The comment seemed to drain the fight out of Mia. She straightened up and regained her seat, "Vince wasn't doing it all. Not at home anyway. All that money Han was giving me kept up the property and everyone's car insurance," second notice, I read, "electricity," third notice, "water and sewage," second notice, "cable, phone, and internet," second notice.

"And you used it all."

"Yeah, it's long gone Dom and I've been using the money from the café to keep us all fed and in Corona." Mia gave me a rueful smile then shook her head, "so, what do you want me to do with this?"

I didn't have an answer for her. I'd lived these last two months in ignorant bliss of what our financial situation was like. My anger was dissipating rapidly being replaced by a gargantuan hole formed by that corrosive chemical called guilt. It was eating up the progress I thought I had made with Mia regarding trust. I desperately wanted her to feel she could trust me to take care of her and here I was running us into the ground. I rubbed my hand over my face, stood then pulled Mia up into a hug.

"I'll take care of it," I said quietly. She pulled back, her eyes questioning me. I needed to remove the stressed look from her face. "I promise. Don't stress."

But Mia looked stressed that night at dinner. Vince and Letty didn't know why we'd been yelling at the garage but they had known us long enough not to mention it. Toretto's needed to stew first before we could calmly discuss a problem. Three hours would not have made the situation less fresh for either of us. So I worked hard to ignore Mia's stress and Vince suggested we watch a movie. If he or Letty were expecting that extra two hours to give us time to look less aggravated, they were sorely mistaken. Mia was still stressed and I was still feeling both lost and irritated.

By nine I had retreated to my room, stripped down to my boxers, and lay on my back in the dark looking unseeingly at the ceiling. I didn't need to look at the reports Mia'd shown me earlier that day. The figures kept writing themselves in traffic light neon colors on the imaginary dry erase board I'd mentally erected on the ceiling. Two thousand dollars times two employees plus a fluctuating tab that was six grand this month for specialty parts. Ten thousand flashed in red. I needed to figure out how to stop the bleed here. I made a note to ask Vince how he'd been able to pay Leon and Jesse this long without putting the garage in the red.

I already knew why that other tab had become weighty. I was starting to rebuild the charger. I'd been inspired by Han. He'd called the other night to catch up and mentioned that he'd rebuilt his car. If he could rebuild his car less than a year after Daphne's death then I could stand to rebuild papa's charger after two years. But I was also sinking money into my Mazda. Two years of random care had left it needing a few upgrades and a massive tune up. I'd also let Letty and Vince continue to order whatever they needed to keep their cars in working order. Papa had never paid us what others might consider a 'salary' however; he had made sure that none of us had to worry about getting the essentials for car care or room and board. I felt that since Letty and Vince were still operating under the old system I owed it to them not to make them feel guilty by mentioning that I couldn't foot the bill.

Regardless of what I could do to get the expenses managed at the garage, it still didn't pay the bills at home. Property insurance for the garage, café and house was averaging three hundred a month. Then tack on six hundred in car insurance for the Mazda, charger, Maxima, and 240sx. Add the fees and it came to two g's. Electricity wasn't bad: a hundred twenty dollars a month except it was three months behind and the fees had brought the grand total to eight hundred. Water and sewage was more reasonable at four hundred. The cable, phone and internet bill was a ludicrous twelve hundred. Then again, Mia had combined the phone to mean cell phones as well. The grand total of four thousand, four hundred dollars and zero over one hundred cents flashed in red on my mental dry erase board. There wasn't any way to stop the bleed here. We needed all of those things. Well, maybe not the cell phones, but I couldn't fathom us living without them.

I thought about the café again. Three hundred dollars in profit remained. But Mia had already itemized out her two hundred dollar trip to the grocery store this month and a two hundred dollar deduction she'd labeled 'gas'. I groaned. We had this small chip can in the kitchen cabinet where we kept our communal gas money. I never even thought about how money made it to that can until tonight. Mia had been using first Han's money, now the café's, to fund our gas guzzling. For the first time in my life I thought about going to that can and there not being enough money for anyone to put gas in their car to even go to work. The thought made me sick to my stomach.

I lay there my brain on economic meltdown, my eyes still wide open. That's how Letty found me at a quarter to midnight. She slipped into the room and closed the door, pausing to pull her pants off. She stood indecisive for a moment and my libido was able to figure out what she was thinking. If she went to the drawer for a pair of my boxers then I could expect trouble if I wanted sex. If she came to bed in her underwear and that spaghetti strap top she could expect that I'd give her the business sometime between her slipping under the covers and us getting ready for work tomorrow. I counted to sixty in my mind before she decided to toss her pants in the corner, pulled her hair out the ponytail, and came to lie down beside me. She rested her head on my chest, her body tense at first, waiting expectantly for me to give her some indication that I recognized she was there. Would I put my arm around her waist or would I rub her ass? I started counting again. I just wished she would fall asleep. I didn't want to move my arms from behind my head. The numbers were still blinking through my mind. There was no yellow. Only red, more red, and a minimal green. Silly green, it kept fading in an out. Slowly the tension faded out of her body and I recognized that she'd relaxed into sleep. It would take me till three a.m. before I would allow myself to follow her.

* * *

Two days later I was standing downstairs with Vince waiting for Letty and Mia. This would be the first time since I got home that anyone would have gone to the races. I was getting frustrated. We were going to be so late we might miss the whole purpose of going to the races to begin with. I folded my arms then sucked in a deep breath to bellow at them.

"Yo, let's go already." I heard stomping start overhead which got louder as they descended the stairs.

"Alright already, geez," Mia shot back. Mia had started going to races while I was away. She was wearing a short black skirt, some black heels, and a flimsy bright green thing that was masquerading as a top. I raised an eyebrow at her. She had the audacity to raise one back.

"You want to change your top?" I asked dryly.

"I thought you were ready to go?" she asked conversationally.

"Not with you dressed like that," I growled.

Vince coughed then added in a gruff voice, "You look good Mia." My head spun around to look at him. I would have to talk to Vince about his growing infatuation with my sister. Letty jangled her keys to catch our attention. I noticed that she was wearing a skirt too. It was as short as Mia's and her top was just as flimsy but in purple to match her car. Her hair was also hanging loose. Was that makeup on her eyes and lips? I frowned. Who told them they could dress like that?

"Come on," she looked at me, widening her eyes slightly and motioning towards the door with her head. I didn't even bother to comment. Instead we all walked outside, Mia locking up before sliding into the car with Letty. I followed Vince and Letty to the empty warehouse district that had become the permanent meet place for the race scene. I felt my adrenaline start to make me hyped the further the house was behind us. By the time we reached the scene I was ready for what I needed to do. This was familiar. The cars lined up in two rows, creating a walkway for people to walk around. There were girls out here with more scandalous clothes on than Mia and Letty, strutting between cars and racers, trying to scope out who they wanted to take them home tonight, only caring about who the winners would be. Racers were sitting on their cars or else next to their cars, showing people their mods and paint jobs. And in the middle of this chaos was Hector. Vince had told me that Hector was now helping to run the races and often held the money if his cousin wasn't. We exited the cars and made our way towards Hector. Although Letty and Mia were behind me and Vince, I was aware of them, thankful that they were sticking close. As I approached Hector, he looked up, a wide smile on his face.

"Yo man, welcome back to the scene," Hector said giving me a manly handshake complete with hug.

"I figured ya'll saved enough money. I'm here to collect," I told him, my voice deep and cocky. Hector laughed.

"Yeah I got you." Hector motioned to Letty and Mia who each waved in turn. I did not like the appreciative look he gave them so I decided to regain his attention.

"So who's racing tonight?"

Hector's eyes lit up, "One of Tran's crew, some random cousin I think. Wale, he's new to you but he's fast, and Sam. Why you want in?" Easy pickings, or at least it would have been two years ago. Who knew how much these racers had improved since I had left? I looked at Vince out of my peripheral and saw him nod once. Anyone else would have seen him nodding his assent at Hector's assessment of the racers stepping up to the line. I knew it was a signal for me to put myself in.

"What's the buy in?"

"One g." I reached in my pocket and handed Hector the money. He counted it, then satisfied yelled to the crowd, "We got a fourth, let's race!" His pronouncement brought a flurry of activity. Hoods clanged shut, music muted as people entered their vehicles, and the sound of engines roaring to life replaced the cacophony of musical noise and crowd chatter. I let the familiarity of the sounds wash over me. It wasn't until I got to the line that I let the panic of what I was doing settle into my chest. I took that money from the garage account knowing that losing it would make it impossible to make the bills next week that were being covered currently as noted by Mia's spreadsheet.

Hector came to stand between Sam and Wale, raised his arms, and then let them fall quickly to his side. Instinctively I threw myself into gear, my foot mashing the pedal then switching to clutch to throw myself into second. I was climbing to fifth in about five seconds. The road, the crowd, the other racers. All this melted into the background. It was only me in the car, listening to the Mazda whining, begging to cross the line before the others. I obliged by hitting the little red button which added a shot of nitrous to catapult me over the spray painted line a quarter mile away from where we'd all began. The colors, people, and objects faded back in and I realized that I was three grand richer than when I started. I heaved a sigh of relief. We'd be able to keep the lights on and pay off some of the bills too. Pulling up to the starting line, I collected myself and opened the car door only to be swarmed by the crowd. Hector fought his way over to me then handed me the money. I grinned then passed it to Vince who whispered in Mia's ear then handed the wad of cash to her. I could see her counting it while Vince looked menacingly at the crowd around her, daring someone to try and take the cash from her nimble fingers. She finished then gave a wide grin. It was all there. I meanwhile was continuing to get slaps on the back from guys and propositions from some of the girls.

I searched for Letty, finding her standing an arm's reach away. My relief at winning the race kept my adrenaline high. I reached for her, grabbing a fistful of her hair right before I gave her a passionate kiss. Oh yeah, there was no way she was going to sleep early tonight. I heard some people snickering and I slowly let her go, rubbing my hands along her hips before pushing her towards her car. The look in her eyes told me that she was as excited as I was to go home. I heard Hector yelling that there would be a party at some club near his garage and people started to disperse. Others might be going to party but my family trudged back home. Everyone made for their respective bedrooms, excited that I had won my first race back on the streets. I heard Mia turn on her radio in her room and knew she's be in there, putting away a mountain of clothes that she'd tried on before leaving tonight so she could find her bed. Vince was probably working out. He'd mentioned feeling restless and using the space between wakefulness and sleep to keep his muscle mass.

That just left me and Letty, not even pretending that we wanted to do anything other than rip each other's clothes off. Once the door closed to our room I started kissing her, making these kisses a continuation of what I started at the race. I felt her hands working on my shirt and I got impatient, breaking our latest kiss long enough to snatch it over my head. I reached for her again, untying that ridiculously flimsy top, letting it drop to the floor. Shoes got kicked off and discarded. I pushed her on the bed, letting her fall back before I pulled off her skirt. She grinned at my impatience. _'I'll show her impatient,'_ I thought to myself. And once I got my pants off, I proceeded to show her how impatient I could make her for the rest of the night.

* * *

Post –race euphoria had finally leveled out for me the following morning. I was sitting in the kitchen with my stack of bills in one pile, money from last night in another, and paperclips. I started by taking out the grand I needed to put back into the garage account today. Ok, three left. First the electric bill. I clipped eight hundred dollars to it. Satisfied. Then I pulled out the cable, and phone bills. I clipped a few more hundreds to those, satisfied when those twelve hundred dollars were appropriated. Then I stared at the remaining bills. Water and sewage or insurance? This one grand would only put a dent in the insurance bill but it would pay off the whole water and sewage thing. Still, I didn't know what would be a better use of the money I had leftover. I started to feel the frustration coming back. Yeah, I had made some money quickly last night but just as quickly I was back down to our last dollars and I hadn't even gotten a handle on what to do at the garage yet.

Mia joined me in the kitchen ten minutes later, and I made a snap decision. Picking up the water and sewage bill, I clipped four hundred dollars to it. Mia looked perplexed for a moment before going to the fridge to grab eggs and bacon for breakfast. I waited until she had broken the eggs before I spoke, taking care to keep my voice calm.

"Here, pay these," I said, tapping the pile with the money clipped to it. I frowned at the six hundred left over then added, "And save this to pay them up for this month." Mia kept scrambling the eggs, taking care not to burn them. I gathered the insurance bills and went to take a shower. I wasn't hungry anymore. By the time I finished everyone else had eaten and were getting ready for work. I left early, choosing to stop by the bank and deposit the money back into the garage account before starting at DT. I was opening the bay doors when Leon and Jesse walked in, all smiles, ready for work. How pissed off would they be when I couldn't pay their salaries? The corrosive guilt was back again, this time eating a hole through my stomach. I let that deter me from lunch. By three o'clock I was feeling light headed and nauseous so I went to hide out in the office.

"Yo Dom," Letty called out around three fifteen. I looked up from the desk to see her standing next to a very irate customer. I did not need to deal with something like this today. My face gave away that I was angry she interrupted me because the nasty look she shot back made me want to throttle her. _'Fine!' _If she wanted me to deal with this guy in the mood I was in, more power to her. My headache made me slam the door as I opened it, which startled the guy. I saw his eyes getting wider in fear as I ate up the ground between me and him.

"What is your issue," I stated. I wasn't asking. I wasn't going to play nice.

"Er, I think the price you're charging me is ridiculous," he stammered out. I snatched the bill from him. Six fifty was standard for new front breaks and rotors plus proper disposal and labor.

"That's standard. You knew this before we started the job," I ground out. We always told people what they would be expected to pay before we started the repairs. It kept us from getting stiffed on the repair bill like this guy was trying to do.

"Yeah, but I thought that a _real_ mechanic was going to work on my vehicle, not this…" he trailed off, insulting Letty. Oh, so he thought Letty wasn't a good enough mechanic because she was a girl. I seethed knowing I would hear her mouth tonight.

"Fine. Letty, rip them out," I said savagely. She looked at me incredulously, her mouth going slack. I couldn't tell if it was because I didn't respond to the comment about her being a real mechanic or that I was being downright nasty to a customer.

"What?" the guy sounded lost.

"You heard me, rip 'em out."

"But you can't do that to me," the guy blustered. He was losing his cool.

"The hell I can't. This is_ my_ garage and ya ain't comin' in here pissin' off my employees and trying to weasel out of payin'," I roared. Everything in the garage had stopped. No one was pretending to be absorbed in their work. The silence following my pronouncement stretched until the guy gave a cough and pulled out his wallet. He paid in cash, Letty handed him his keys, and he peeled out of the drive. My head was pounding in earnest now but I was on a roll. I was too angry to check my feelings. I turned to Letty, accusation in my voice.

"Part of being a good mechanic is handling your own crap." Her eyes narrowed and she crossed her arms. Why was I eliciting this response with the women in my life?

"Part of being in charge is handling that crap for all of us, not just the 'woman mechanic'," she shot back. Great, so I wouldn't get a break till we got home. She wanted to have this out here.

"You think I'm not handling things?"

"You showed us you're not handling things! You don't bite off a customer's head Dom! You don't disappear for hours at a time to take a nap during the work day! You don't…" she was shouting in earnest now, but finally someone stepped in.

"Yo Letty, chill girl. Dom's got a lot to adjust to," Leon said, his voice placating. He slowly inched forward finally reaching her and placing an arm around her shoulders. I couldn't tell if the gesture was meant to keep her in place or to give him good position to stand between us in case this fight came to blows. What it did do was make me jealous that he felt comfortable enough to do that. I started to feel a cloud covering my vision. Viciously I stalked past all of them, pulling my keys out of my pocket. I peeled off so fast in the Mazda that I left skid marks on the road.

Around six I started hearing cars pull up in the driveway. I'd eaten a sandwich, downed a Corona, and popped an aspirin. All it had done was taken the edge off my headache. The fury I'd felt before I left had waned, the corrosive guilt coming back. I made an effort to move from the kitchen table but suddenly I felt too weary to do so. Let them see me like this. Maybe Letty would take pity and not continue our argument from before.

"Dom?" a hesitant voice asked. Mia. She walked in, sitting down in the chair to my right, placing her hands over mine. I heard boots clanking to a stop nearby, the scrape of a chair, and then Vince sat down on my left.

"Brotha, we need to talk to you," he sniffed and flexed his muscles. I didn't have enough strength to tell him I wasn't in a position to physically fight anyone right now. I nodded. Leon and Jesse took this as their cue to sit down: Leon next to Mia and Jesse at the opposite end of the table. This left Letty the chair next to Vince. She stomped in then slumped into the chair, her body language telling me that she'd like nothing better than to run me over.

"Mia mentioned trouble. So how bad is it?" Jesse piped up. He was looking nervously from face to face. Tension and silence were not a good mix for his nerves. I frowned and Jesse gulped.

"You're discussing family business with outsiders?" I asked Mia, flicking my eyes over Leon and Jesse quickly before settling on Mia again. She shrugged.

"You were the one who said they were a part of our team."

"Team?" Jesse sounded confused. I thought about telling him that what I said had been a slip but then I looked down the table at him and it hit me. It would have been easy to fire him and Leon but in my mind they had already become my responsibility, part of my family.

"Yeah, team," the realization made my voice sound gruff.

Leon spoke up, "then what's going on?"

Reluctantly I told them about the bills, the fact that we weren't scraping by. I felt ashamed but I pressed on. Vince shuffled in his seat when I mentioned the part about paying the salaries. He coughed.

"I meant for that to be a temporary fix," he said as an apology.

"But then that thing with Han happened and we needed the help longer," Mia added. Vince already felt bad for needing the extra hands so Mia wouldn't make him suffer by explaining how temporary help had turned into permanent employees. That still didn't change the fact that I couldn't pay them which I mentioned to the group. I saw Jesse's eyes start tracing patterns in the table. He was really disappointed.

"Well how are the rest of you making it if you're not getting paid?" Leon sounded confused. Apparently he thought we were all making salaries too. Vince explained about papa's pay schedule and the benefits of living a-la-Toretto. "Ah," was all he could say. We sat in silence for a few moments before Jesse spoke back up.

"I like working at DT's," he sounded petulant. I pictured him standing up, scuffing his toes in the dirt. It made me grin.

"I want you to stay," I said earnestly, "in fact if you want, you could stay here." The last part spilled from my lips I didn't have time to censor them. That wasn't like me to offer up my house to random people at all. Then again, these guys had been with everyone else far longer than I had known them. Mia smiled wide.

"We do have the extra rooms in the basement," she added conversationally. Apparently Mia had a soft spot where Jesse was concerned too. If Jesse was a puppy he would have wagged his tail in assent.

"Le, can we?" Jesse asked excitedly. Leon looked like he was on the fence.

"This means you'd get paid like the rest of us," I warned then thought about the rules that we prescribed to around here and felt I should be honest about those too, "and you're expected to put this family first…"

Mia cut across me, "he means mandatory attendance at family barbeques…"

Vince added, "Keeping family business strictly in the family…"

"…and we don't race each other," I finished, rolling my eyes at Mia for good measure.

"I think we could handle that," Leon said while Jesse pumped his arms in the air in triumph.

"As for the rest, I guess I can keep racing for it," I told them, thinking about what I'd been able to do with last night's winnings and not feeling quite as sick about it now.

"Don't worry man, we'll help," Leon said to murmured assent around the table from everyone but Letty. She hadn't added anything to the conversation. Mia, sensing that whatever was going on between me and Letty deserved privacy pushed away from the table, signaling that the impromptu meeting was adjourned. She went to the kitchen to start dinner while Vince motioned to Leon and Jesse, the three of them moving to the basement to discuss room assignments. I stood and so did Letty. She pushed away from the table so forcefully that the chair fell over. Not bothering to pick it up she stalked upstairs and slammed the bedroom door. I sighed. She was _still _angry. Setting the chair right I slowly moved upstairs, grateful she hadn't locked the door, her body tense face down on the bed. I removed my shoes then straddled her legs. She didn't move. I started rubbing her back, kneading her shoulders, removing the knots produced by vigorous work in the garage and rage filled silence for the remainder of the afternoon. I kept this up until she grunted.

"Letty," I continued massaging her, "you know you're a great mechanic." I might as well head this one off before she brought it up. She grunted again which meant I could continue. "I didn't want you to worry about the bills." She started squirming to get up but I placed my hands on her back to keep her still. She grunted again, this time in agitation.

"You think this is just about your secrets or my pride?" she ground out.

"Well what else is there?" I asked gently. I needed to keep my cool here for us to make up before dinner. Mia'd lose her mind if I we weren't both on the mend by then.

Her jaw tightened and the words sounded forced, "You can't jump down my throat, our throats, when we call you on your shit Dom." It was true I had been nasty when she started listing all the things I was neglecting to do. I started to massage her again, this time letting the gestures slowly turn into sensual strokes. She groaned this time so I proceeded.

"Ah, you got me," I told her with just enough resign in my voice to sound credible. It wasn't a promise to change. I didn't know if I'd ever have enough control over my temper to do that but I would acknowledge that it was something I did. More like a character flaw. She squirmed.

"Dom?" her voice was husky. I knew what she wanted because I wanted it too. We never did make it down for dinner that night.

* * *

By the time December had rolled in, we'd settled into a routine at the Toretto household. Work, home, and races. Thankfully no one was losing races so we kept the income coming in, satisfying our obligations at the house and at the garage too. This was a strategic effort on our part. We'd wait until others had committed to a race then decided, based on skill, which member would race from our team. I was glad we were doing it this way because it meant that no one car would require extensive amounts of work at any given time, spreading out the rewards of specialty parts to everyone guilt free.

I was in the small garage behind the house today, working on the charger. It was one of the few stress free moments I'd let myself feel since I found out how difficult it was to be responsible for five other people. I pulled out a three quarter torque wrench and weighed it in my hands, the feeling of the tool no longer bringing the ache it used to when I thought of it and the circumstances that led to my stint in Lompoc. A gentle cough interrupted my musings.

"You hungry?" it was Mia, a sandwich in one hand, a cold Corona in the other. I nodded and she waited for me to rinse off my hands with the remainder of a bottle of water before she relinquished my meal. I bit into the sandwich then coughed. Tuna again. I raised my eyebrow at me and she had the nerve to shrug. "Guess this recipe wasn't good either." I shook my head, took another bite then promptly chased it with the beer.

"You shouldn't ruin good beer like this," I told her. Mia had been trying to perfect a decent tasting tuna salad for the past two weeks. She needed to give it up.

"Give me the sandwich back," she said snatching for it. I took another bite. I would eat the sandwich to placate her. Her mouth turned down at the corners determining if she would be able to get it away from me without getting hurt in the process then deciding it wasn't worth it. She started looking around, pausing to stare at pictures of papa in his heyday at the tracks, pictures of his crew scattered around. There was a picture in here of us over a decade old: me, her, and papa sitting on the hood of the charger, our grins identical. She looked at it wistfully.

"Mi, I think you should start community college in the spring." Her head spun so she could stare at me.

"Are you crazy? Dom, we can barely afford to live! I can't go to college." I cringed. She was so matter-of-fact about the money aspect.

"We'll make do. Papa would want you to go," I told her, using his wishes to my advantage. She looked cowed for a moment so I pressed on, "community is only a couple grand a semester. I'll even take out a mortgage on the garage to help pay for it if we have to." She started to shake her head no. "It would only be for a little while."

"Dom, we're not going into debt so I can go to school. That's a luxury we don't need."

"No, rebuilding the charger is a luxury we don't need," I countered. I meant it too. If I needed to lay off the rebuild of the charger to pay for Mia to go to school then I would make the sacrifice. She threw up her hands in disgust.

"And what would I study huh?"

"I don't care. I could use an accountant but doctors make more money," I threw out flippantly.

"Any profession I chose will require me to finish at a university. Universities cost big bucks," she reminded me feebly. Her mind was already turning over majors and classes.

"Like I said, I'll make it work. Humor me and sign up for school ok?" Mia looked at me hard in the eyes before coming to hug me.

"I promise I'll make you and papa proud," she said solemnly. I kissed her forehead.

"Good. Now take this crappy tuna sandwich and get outta my garage," I told her, shoving the sandwich into her stunned hands before pushing her out of the door. I could hear her laughing as she re-entered the house. I made my way to the picture of me, Mia, and my papa, taking care to stare into his eyes. I grinned. I'd be getting Mia textbooks for Christmas this year.


	6. KingDom

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Fast and The Furious. Sorry.**

**A/N: I want to thank everyone who reviewed. I definitely wanted to shout out tfatfreak207. I'll keep writing. =)**

* * *

** Chapter 6: KingDom**

"Well I want to know if the rumors about 'King' Toretto are true," the San Franciscan punk stated loudly, the crowd around Hector growing in size to catch his challenge. A couple of people snickered but I couldn't tell if it was because they had a lot of confidence in my driving or because the guy didn't realize I could physically beat him into the cement.

It was March and I was trying to scrounge up this month's tuition bill. Thank God Mia had thought to spread the payment out over the semester. After much deliberation and a trip to the visit with the admissions counselors, Mia and I decided that it would be too much of a hassle for her to take classes at one college and try to make them transfer to the new school later on. UCLA was convenient and surprisingly cheap considering its reputation with the added bonus of having both an accounting and medical program. I only had to come up with slightly more than four grand for the semester, not including books. Textbooks cost almost as much as the first payment I made to the school though.

I took in the San Franciscan punk again, noting his pretty boy haircut and the arrogant way he smiled. According to his tirade, word of my consistent winning streak in L.A. had reached his corner of the universe and he'd driven six hours with a crew of twenty to find out if I was as fast as the rumors proclaimed. Hector had asked him who he thought he was and the punk had answered that he was the King of the Streets in San Fran. I rolled my eyes. Big deal. He wasn't on his block anymore, or even close to his own neighborhood. He thought he was going to school me on my own turf? I had a moment while he was prancing around the circle that had formed, laughing and slapping hands with his friends, thinking I would be too scared to even race him. I could have cut him down and told him that he wasn't even worthy enough for me to acknowledge and I don't think anyone would have blamed me. Hector looked like this guy was pissin' him off, thinking he could come over here and dictate what would happen six hours from his home town. I could have won without ever setting foot in the car. But I didn't _want_ to win that way. Deep down I childishly wanted to see if I could beat him. Beating him would get me more respect out here than backing down.

So instead of backing away I stared him down and asked calmly, "You got money to put up against that mouth of yours?" The crowd 'oohed'. He turned to look at me again, reaching into his pocket to pull out a wad of cash.

"Will a thousand cover it?" He smiled that arrogant smile of his again. Internally I sighed. If he wanted a race only between me and him then he was going to have to put a little more on the line than that. I had bills to pay.

"Maybe in the minor leagues." The crowd 'oohed' again. He was making it too easy for me to verbally dominate here. Then again, I'd been playing cocky for so long that it was second nature to me by now. He seemed to realize that he was past the point of backing down.

"That's fair. Will four cover it?" Yeah, four would cover it…if I had it. I couldn't back down either.

"Tell you what: you put in four and I'll put up the pink slip to my car." Some of his crew started to smile. They thought I was getting ready to be sharked by the punk. He seemed confident enough to hand his cash to Hector. I motioned to Hector to follow me to the Mazda where I promptly handed him the pink slip.

"You're brave man," Hector told me, shaking his head. After counting San Fran's cash, he declared to the crowd at large, "Yo, let's race!"

The ride to the line gave me enough time to feel some unease about how easy it was to get myself in over my head. That punk had nerve to call me out but I let my pride override good sense. I let out a large breath. It was done now so I better get myself into the frame of mind to win this, else I would look like a gigantic fool in front of my girl, my best friends, my sister, and the racers. I wouldn't be able to live it down if that punk went back to San Francisco gloating about how he beat me. Hector let some random girl start us off to keep anyone from questioning whether I had an unfair advantage since we'd known each other since high school. I snapped of the line so fast that the punk never had a chance to catch up. I vaguely thought about how I wouldn't even need to use my nitrous to beat him but I heard the whining of the Mazda, pictured his overconfident face, and pressed it anyway. Hell if I was going to beat him, might as well slaughter him so bad there would be no room for doubt.

I finished the quarter mile two full car lengths ahead of him then allowed him to limp back to the start with me so we could regain the center of the crowd as we exited our cars. The whole crowd, both L.A. and San Franciscan was cheering. Hector ran over to me to slap me on the back, handing me the wad of cash and my pink. Mia was there to take it off me and count it again, her smile flowing from both her lips and her eyes. Vince stood close to her, unable to keep the grin off his face but at least keeping in the guffaws straining for release. I wanted to laugh at the punk full out too but forced myself to refrain and play it cool. I'd cleared Mia's whole semester of tuition in one night. If only he had shown up back in January.

"I'm impressed," he said, raising his eyebrows as if I was the class idiot winning the spelling bee. So he was going to try to play me since he lost. I felt myself huff at him. I heard Leon laughing close by instead.

"Dawg, the way you drive it's going to be a long trip home," Leon said. The whole crowd laughed. The punk looked humiliated but we were spared further commentary by the distant noise of sirens. He would be spared me rubbing his nose in my win by the cops. We ran, the crowd quickly disbursing to fade into the L.A. landscape.

My adrenaline running extra high from the win and the successful cop eluding spilled over, keeping me in good spirits for the whole week. For the moment I was caught up on the bills. I'd left all the garbage that had been riding me since I got home at the start line of that race. I felt like pre-prison Dom, carefree and playful. Monday night I went with Vince to see his mother. She was parked on a bar stool at her favorite dive but was happy to learn we weren't there to haul her out. Instead she regaled us with stories about Vince as a snotty ass kid. Around the fourth shot of tequila the stories started to seem funny to me and Vince too. We got so drunk that we had to call Leon to cart us home and paid for it during the first hours of Tuesday before the aspirin and water kicked in. Tuesday after work I kidded around with Jesse, even played some racing game against him on the PlayStation. My inability to beat him gave Jesse a lot of pleasure. He patted my back in a consoling manner after my twenty-fifth consecutive loss and begged me to pass the controller to someone who was more of a challenge. I could give it to him though. He could be champion of video game races since he wasn't a shining light on the real blacktop.

I let Leon help me grill Wednesday night. Grilling was my thing and I didn't let just anyone touch my grill. Leon was surprised when I handed him my grilling tools and told him not to screw up. Mia and Jesse stood over his shoulder the entire time, cheering him on and joking with him about burning the meat. But as we ate I looked down the table at him and gave him a nod. He'd done well. Thursday after picking Mia up from class I took her to dinner. We spent the alone time together catching up on what she was up to: school, her classmates, her conversations with her academic advisor, her indecision about majors. It felt good to listen to her chatter on about the life she was leading outside of the bubble of the café and the house. For a moment I thought about asking her whether she was dating anyone but then figured that my good mood didn't need to be tested that way, more so because I hadn't spent quality time with Letty yet.

Vince brought Mia up from the café at the official end of the work day on Friday so she could hang with the team while we tuned up our own cars for races the following evening. All of us guys worked on our respective vehicles which were spilling out into the driveway of the garage. We had a lot of cars now despite the fact that Mia didn't have one. She and Letty were working together to buff the wax onto the 240sx's purple paint evenly. They were speaking so low that I couldn't make out their conversation over the clank of tools and radio in the corner. I kept sneaking glances at them. Those two were up to something, probably nothing good either. I hoped Mia wasn't trying to enlist Letty in the campaign to make me ease up on Mia's ban from racing. I'd already put my foot down on this issue once before and I knew Letty didn't agree with my decision. She felt it was sexist. I was protecting my sister and I would not be swayed. Letty must have felt my eyes on her because she paused to look in my direction. I raised an eyebrow which made her start laughing. Mia looked confused for a second before Letty whispered something to her which made them both laugh. I shook my head. Whatever it was would have to wait. I finished exchanging out my empty nitrous tanks for fresh ones then walked around to help clear up so we could go home.

Dinner that night was pizza followed by a movie for entertainment. It was a poorly done horror flick that had Leon in the grips of a laughing fit halfway through. Vince picked up some popcorn and looked like he wanted to lob it at Leon for a moment. His stomach got the better of him though because he ate it instead. Mia grinned.

"You know, we haven't had a party here in a long time," Mia threw out conversationally. She was right. Although we'd been winning races, we'd yet to have an after-race bash. The timing and the money had never been right but things had changed last weekend. I grinned on the inside but kept my face impassive.

"Yeah, so?" Vince growled.

"Well since Dom's getting challenges from out-of-towners, maybe we should throw him a party after the races tomorrow," Mia continued in that casual tone.

Leon agreed instantly, "That could be fun."

"Yeah, can we have a party tomorrow, please?" Jesse asked in such a little kid way that Leon laughed and ruffled his hair.

"Come on, at least for kids' sake," Leon added still smiling. I looked down into Letty's face. She was curled up in my lap. My eyes asked the question.

"I'm down for whatever," she drawled.

"I guess we need more beer then," I told them. Jesse and Mia high-fived, hooting with glee.

The following night I arrived with the team at the races, still high on the fumes from the week before. I shook hands with Hector and Edwin. I made nice with Sam even though I felt a sting of jealousy when he briefly hugged Letty. I gave head nods to the random people I who hailed me. I'd even decided that I wasn't going to race tonight; I'd just bask in the left over glow from my win against the punk. And then we heard more cars pull up. I recognized some of them as the entourage that had come with the punk from San Francisco last week. Was he going to try for a rematch this soon? It took me less than thirty seconds to scan their crowd and find that he was missing from the group. Well good for him. A few of the guys approached me and I could feel the tension in the crowd building. As if they had homing beacons my team gathered closer to me, Vince standing behind my right shoulder ready to throw punches if this encounter came to blows. Hector gravitated towards what was fast becoming the epicenter of the crowd, unwilling to be kept out of the proceedings. I squared up with a guy who reminded me of Vince minus the tattoos and the scruffy face. He smiled and I reserved judgment.

"You're Toretto right?" I nodded so he would continue. "I'm Jackson. Heard you humiliated Harvey last week." Chuckles could be heard from the entire crowd. I nodded again.

"So what brings you here?"

"I wanted to see for myself how fast you are."

"I thought we saw the best S.F. had to offer last week," Sam threw in to more chuckles from the crowd.

"I don't know about all that," Jackson replied, a chuckle in his voice too. He was taking the whole thing in stride which brought him up in cool points for me.

"He ain't worthy," Edwin threw out which others parroted. Jackson stood his ground though. I gave him a sideways look. I decided to see how far I could push without coming to blows.

My attitude in place, I shrugged then said flippantly, "I dunno. Hector, you think he's worthy?"

Hector took his time to look Jackson up and down, getting into poking fun at the visitor. After assessing him he replied, "It's not my call. You're the king here." Hector's proclamation was backed up by the L.A. crowd. I took another quick look at Jackson then threw up my hands.

"Well we don't know if you are worthy…but we'll still race," I said loud enough for everyone to hear. Jackson smiled. He took it so well that I even approved his picks from San Fran for third and fourth in our race. Given the jovial atmosphere, I bumped the race down to a one g buy in. This was all in good fun, not a lesson like last week. Still I coasted over the line in first, regardless of the reason, but I shook the other racer's hands and the cops didn't show up. The team spread the word to the normal crowd about our after party then the crowd broke up, most of them ending up at our place to chill with King Toretto. After two Corona's the added euphoria was becoming difficult to contain. I started searching for Letty but she was somewhere in this madhouse with Mia, most likely dancing since I was pretending to be too cool to move from my spot by the wall. I made my way upstairs to my room and finally let go of a large smile once the door shut. I was feeling so good I picked up the phone and called Han, trying to figure out what time it was over there since he was either sixteen or seventeen hours ahead of us. Or was that behind us? Whatever, I didn't care. I just wanted to share the news.

"Hey," I started as soon as he picked up. My smile was still uncontained on my face.

"Dom, are you wasted?" He didn't sound sleepy, just concerned.

"Naw, nothing like that," I told him, pausing dramatically to peak his curiosity. "I have a rep now."

"What?" he asked like he didn't understand. I was eager to explain.

"It's official. I am King of the Streets." Yep, I'd have permanent stretch marks around my mouth tomorrow.

"Huh," he replied without enthusiasm. I felt my smile falter a bit.

"What do you mean, huh?" I said with a slight edge. Han started laughing. He'd been messing with me. "Jerk," I called him without heat.

"Well how did you manage that?"

"Well last week some punk shows up and starts going on about how he's the best in San Fran and that he's come out to race me and see if the _"rumors about King Toretto are true"_ and all this crap and I just beat the breaks off his ass," I recapped, not bothering to take a breath in the telling of this tale.

Han responded in a drawl, "Oh is that all."

"Yeah," I thought back on that night, "but I think it really crushed him because he brought like twenty racers with him and they played him out afterwards. Anyway, some of the San Fran scene showed up this week and our scene deferred to me."

"Deferred? You mean you held the money?" Han asked, living up to his title of jerk for the evening.

"Naw, I got to decide if people were _worthy_ enough to race with me." This sent us both into a good laugh. I wasn't expecting his next question.

"So what does the team have to say about it?" I hesitated, unclear on how to answer the question.

"Well…" I started and then I saw the Letty enter the room. She saw me on the phone and slammed the door grinning. Before I could register what she was doing she took a flying leap at me and I fell back on the bed, a whoosh of air escaping my lungs. "Han…" I started again but Letty took the phone from me before I could say anything else.

"Han, Dom owes me a very long massage," Letty told him in a low sexy voice. I immediately felt myself get aroused. She disconnected the call and tossed the phone on the floor. I cradled the back of her head, threading my fingers through her hair, kissing her heatedly. She groaned then tried to push herself up off me but I wasn't having it. Realizing struggling was getting her nothing but winded she leaned closer and to whisper in my ear, "I need to get up to show you something." I reluctantly released her, making sure to keep some part of my body in contact with hers: first one leg trapped between both of mine, then my hands on her thighs pushing her skirt up as she took off her top. She hissed, "Dom, not yet." I let her push me back down, stopping till I was propped on my elbows. She removed the skirt and then I understood why she wanted me to wait. Letty never wore lingerie to races. She never knew if a good wind or someone's exhaust would expose what only I had seen. The sexy, see-through, red and black, lace bra and panty set sent me into sensory overload.

"Huh," I said, trying to fake a nonchalance I didn't feel. I let my eyes sweep over her, taking in her signature smirk. She wasn't buying my act. I tried a different tact. "So am I worthy?"

Letty smiled widely, a laugh escaping her. She crawled on top of me slowly, sliding to a halt when her breath could tickle my ear. I groaned. "I don't know yet, but you _can_ race," she told me, the swagger in her voice mocking my earlier words. In appreciation I made sure the massage and sex were very long and satisfying for her.

* * *

"I've got a way for you to stop nickel-and-diming it," Johnny Tran told me conversationally seven months later. I looked at Johnny cautiously. We'd come to an agreement that we should try to salvage the tenuous friendship that he and I'd had in high school. I frankly thought it was non-existent but Han told me that you could never have too many friends.

I'd been out of jail for a full year now. I had a tentative handle on the finances. Sometimes we still barely made it. I couldn't feign comfort in the team's financial situation just yet. I marked progress by how much wrench time and money I could sink into the charger which wasn't much. That's why I was entertaining this conversation at the races. I have found that the best place for me to have a covert conversation is amongst the chaos. Everything is so loud and bright that a quiet conversation is virtually confidential. Plus my team gets wrapped up in socializing with others on the lazy race nights so they aren't underfoot. I shrugged to urge him to continue.

"You know my family is in the import export business right?" he asked casually. Yes I knew his family was legally in shipping. It was the cargo that might not always be legal.

"Yeah, what about it."

"My father's letting me take on some of the accounts." This was news. I didn't look directly at him but he could see my eye brow rise slightly. "I'm hiring a few new drivers to help me make all of my deliveries."

"So you want me to drive for you?"

"Just move a couple of semi's across town once or twice a week." I raised my eyebrow again.

"So hire someone with trucking experience," I told him slowly. It was odd that he would ask me to do a job that he could go to a reputable truck driving school and recruit from. Johnny didn't disappoint with his reply.

"I need people I can trust not to piss me off or steal my shit." Ding! It wasn't exactly on the up and up. I know I should have immediately said no. After all I had seen what illegal activities could do to a man and his family. But I'd also seen the money that came from underground work. Besides didn't I have enough smarts to learn from others mistakes? Johnny could tell I was mulling the decision over in my mind so he sweetened the deal, "It pays twenty-five hundred a week."

I didn't have a chance to answer him. Letty and Hector strode over to us, Letty's mouth twisted into a grimace even though her eyes were smiling. She was getting ready to shark someone. Sure enough Hector confirmed my suspicions.

"Yo Dom, your girl got a challenge. Convince her to race man," he pleaded. Something must have gone down to make him beg to have her race.

Letty played it up, turning the corners of her mouth down in an imitation pout, "I don't have to prove myself to anybody, least of all a bunch of wannabe racers."

"Come on," Hector crooned, "we need some action tonight chica."

I looked at Letty's eyes then back at Hector, keeping my voice conversational, "And who's racing?"

"Sam, Joi, and that punk Robinson." I sighed. That punk Robinson had been trying to race me for weeks but I just kept refusing him. I'd seen him race before and he wasn't a challenge. I really didn't have patience for every arrogant wannabe racer to try his luck against "King Toretto". I looked at Letty's eyes for a third time. I knew she wanted to race him to set him in his place. He wasn't in her league either.

"Letty," I sighed for effect, pulling her to my side, "come on, just race him?"

She continued pouting. I could see a crowd starting to form around us as the other challengers sought out Hector. Letty whispered to me, "Robinson thinks if he beats me, you'll race him to salvage your pride."

I laughed out loud then whispered in her ear to raise the speculation of the crowd, "He's an idiot. Smoke 'em."

"So is your girl in, Toretto?" Robinson called out.

"Yeah, I'm in," Letty called back.

The crowd got amped up and Hector called out the cross streets for the race. I made sure to park next to Vince and the rest of the team near the start line. As we waited for Hector to start the race I sized up Letty's competition. Letty looked cool and collected in her car, her lips pursed to release an impatient breath of air, her eyes trained on the finish line a quarter mile away. Sam was more relaxed, his eyes alternating between Letty on his left and Joi on his right, his lips curled into a smile. He was probably thinking about how lucky he was to be between two girls but I was going to break his neck if he kept looking Letty like that. Joi Tran looked…wow, she looked great. Time had enhanced her femininity, her exotic eyes and slender fingers looking almost out of place behind the wheel of the Mitsubishi Spider.

I shook my head finally looking at Robinson. His arrogance could be felt all the way over here. He clearly didn't think a woman could be any competition for him at all. That was his loss. He found that out as Letty crossed the line first, closely followed by Sam. Robinson limped into third. Joi came in dead last but the way she was driving led me to believe that she just entered for kicks. Letty got out of the car back at the start to wild applause from the crowd. She grinned when I joined her, placing an arm around her shoulders and planting a kiss on her neck.

Hector came to give Letty the money, pulling her from me and into a big hug with a, "Yo chica that was awesome!" Before we could say anything to Robinson though, someone yelled 'COPS!' and the crowd scattered. I ran for the Mazda, glancing over at Vince who had Mia securely in his Maxima. We nodded then both peeled out in opposite directions. I lost track of the others as I wove in and out of side streets, finally taking care to park in a quiet parking garage before making my way on foot to street level. I walked across the street to a convenience store, taking my time to select gum and pay before making my way back to the car. I delayed long enough to give the police time to give up the chase for street racers then rode home, parking behind Vince in the driveway.

I counted the cars as I walked towards the front door. Everyone was home safe and we didn't have any visitors. Good. I'd had time to think about Johnny's offer and I wanted to get to bed early. The team was sitting in the living room: Leon and Jesse playing PlayStation, Vince absently strumming his guitar, Letty and Mia sharing secrets in the corner. They all looked up at me as I entered, visibly relaxing as I gave a lopsided smile crooking my finger at Letty, motioning for her to come to me. I wasn't expecting it but she took my hand, leading me to our bedroom. I wanted to talk to her but somewhere between opening my mouth and forming the words she was kissing me. I forgot what I wanted to say, getting caught up in her passionate adrenaline rush. Sex with her tonight was wild and frenzied. She didn't seem like she could get enough and I was eager to please. I was so distracted that I had to wait until morning to bring up my news.

We were lying in bed Sunday morning at nine a.m. lazily touching each other. It was comfortable, the desire for sex exercised out of us the previous night. She sighed.

"What?" I asked her.

"Whatever it is Dom, don't hide it," she stated. I hesitated to work out the best way to approach the conversation.

"Johnny Tran offered me a job." I felt Letty tense underneath the hand that was drawing circles on her back.

"Uh huh." Uh oh. She was not happy. I explained what he wanted me to do and how much he was going to pay. She pushed herself up to sit next to me, her nakedness forgotten in her anger.

"I need to do this," I defended quickly.

"No. You _want_ to do this," she shot back. "Didn't you learn anything from Han?"

"Yeah Letty. That's how I know what trouble to avoid."

"Do you hear yourself right now?"

"Do you hear _me_ right now?" I shot back, my voice rising slightly.

"You arrogant idiot. You'd risk jail for an extra twenty-five hundred a week? You'd risk making Mia suffer that way again for you? You'd risk…" she stopped short. Her voice had risen too.

"I'm not risking anything. I'm trying to provide for this family," I told her angrily.

"You are providing for this family," she reminded me.

"It's not enough!" I roared. I was frustrated. Didn't she see? Didn't she understand how horrible it felt to worry if we'd have enough for the car insurance this month? Didn't she realize how I still agonized over Mia's tuition and fees?

"Then tell us so we can all work to fix this," she opened her arms widely to encompass the house, the cars, the businesses. She was roaring too.

"I've found a way to fix this. I'm tired of nickel-and-diming it," I said, borrowing Johnny phrase. Letty frowned.

"If you are set on letting that snake coil you into his illegal mess rather than depend on this family," she said in a low and deadly voice.

"I'm doing this for us Letty," I said just as deadly. She got up and started putting her clothes on before wrenching open the drawers and putting stuffing her clothes into a duffel bag. I got up too, putting on clothes too before ripping the bag from her. "What do you think you're doing?"

"Leaving," she ground out, snatching the bag back from me. My temper took over completely. I knocked the bag out of her hands, causing some of her clothes to spill out.

"Ya ain't leavin'!"

"Ya ain't makin' me stay!" I grabbed her left arm. She slapped me with her right, leaving my cheek stinging. I grabbed her right arm to stop her from hitting me again and shook her. We started yelling at each other, Spanish and Italian swear words mixing incoherently with English. It took us some time to figure out that someone was banging on the bedroom door. I was so angry I couldn't even make out what they were saying. I tried to concentrate on what was going on beyond our argument which gave me enough clarity to see I still had her arms gripped in my hands. I released her and she shoved me in my chest to put space between us. Stunned I pushed her back harder than I meant to. Letty's body made contact with the door, her head rapping against it with a sickening thud. The banging on the other side of the door stopped. My mouth opened in shock.

"Oh shit! Letty? Letty? Letty?" I stammered. Her wide confused eyes started swimming in tears. I started to move towards her. I wanted to hold her, to tell her how sorry I was, that I didn't mean it. It truly had been an accident. She shook her head wildly then turned to unlock and open the door. She couldn't rush out of the room because Vince was blocking the opening, red faced and heaving, clearly as angry as we were. I could make out Leon, Jesse and Mia standing in the hallway beyond him. I could hear Mia's sobs. Vince took a look at Letty's bruised arms and he pushed past her, coming to stand in my face.

"You hittin' women now?" Vince snarled at me, flecks of spit hitting me in the face. I didn't flinch. I deserved anything he gave me. We stared into each other's eyes. He flexed his muscles preparing for a punch.

"Vince!" Mia yelled coming in to stand next to us, knowing it was futile to try to stand between us. "No more fighting please!" We didn't stop staring each other down but his fists stayed curled at his side.

Leon's calm voice filtered into the room, "Look let's take this downstairs." He was trying to get us to move out of the small tense space of the room to give us all a chance to breathe. He put a steadying hand on Vince's shoulder. Vince took a step back but didn't look any less menacing.

"Letty?" I said quietly. I didn't dare to move in case Vince decided to pound me. I needed to get this out before the fist fight began. She didn't turn to look at me. She started to rest against the door jamb but hissed when her bruised arm made contact with the wood. No one moved as she stared at her arms and then she started to cry. It was gross the way she was crying. The loud wailing was cutting my heart into little pieces. I'd never heard anything that horrible from anyone ever in my life. I felt selfish for being thankful that she didn't cry that way for long. Jesse started to walk towards her and she sniffed to an abrupt halt, brushing past him down the stairs and out of the door before I made a move. I wanted to follow her but Vince moved in my path again. Mia started to put her hands in between us but I looked at her.

"Stay back Mia," I told her, "I deserve it. Hit me Vince." I wanted him to make me pay for hurting Letty. I wanted to feel something other than sick and ashamed. Vince smacked me hard on the side of my head before storming out of the room. I was going to have a throbbing knot there but I didn't care. I heard the slam of his bedroom door three floors down and Mia heaved a deep breath, taking Jesse with her down the stairs and out of the house. The Jetta fired up a few minutes later and pulled away from the curb. I saw the keys to the 240sx lying on the dresser and I hoped they were going to look for Letty. They shouldn't have too much trouble finding her since she was on foot. Leon leaned against the wall, content to watch me as I righted the duffel bag, taking care to repack the clothes that had spilled out then add the rest of her meager wardrobe. I felt sick again. I went to the bathroom, making sure to grab her tooth and hair brushes, adding them to the rest of her things. Finally I walked back into the bedroom and grabbed the 240sx's keys and clipped them to the zipper of the duffel. I shoved her possessions at Leon who took them with good grace and left the room, not bothering to close the door behind him. I lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling, not moving until my cell rang four hours later.

"So what's your decision Toretto?" Johnny asked me.

"Yeah," I replied. I couldn't muster up any emotion or reservations. I'd already lost the respect of everyone important in my world so any reasons not to go forward were null and void. The least I could do was make sure that I provided for them.

"Great. Come by the office Monday night and I'll set up some driving lessons," he finalized. I disconnected then resumed staring at the ceiling till night fell. Mia and Jesse showed up at the house around eight, joining Vince and Leon in the living room. Around nine Leon and Jesse left together, the Jetta returning fifteen minutes later and everyone taking that as a sign to filter to their own rooms. Mia's footsteps stopped in front of her door, started towards my door, then returned to her room. I heard her rustling around in there for an hour before she fell asleep. It was around midnight that I heard the 240sx firing up at the curb. I didn't have the energy to get up to glimpse at Letty as she drove out of my life.


	7. Penance

**Disclaimer: Don't own The Fast and the Furious. Not making any money off this work of fiction. Sigh.**

**A/N: I agonized writing this chapter. It won't do as I ask. After waiting weeks for it to get it together, I have decided to just post it "as is". 'Nuff said.**

* * *

Chapter 7: Penance

The next morning I woke up somber but with a purpose. I was going to do my best impression of a grovel to Letty and get her to forgive me. Not bothering with the Mazda, I walked down the street to her parents' house. I struggled to remember the last time I had walked to her door. Oh yeah, I almost forgot. It was the time I took her to her first street race. That was, at minimum, three and a half years ago. I'd rarely had to come to her house for anything. Before we were dating there was no reason for me to want to other than to appease my father. I often walked her home when Papi said it was _'too late'_ or _'too dark'_ for a _'young mechanic'_to walk home alone. And after we started dating she was at our house so much that most times her dad would come to get her. Sometimes her parents called and Papi would send Vince with Letty instead, claiming that he couldn't be sure she'd stay a _'young mechanic'_ if I decided to detour on the way there. A ghost of a grin crept over my face. Papi's comment had been three weeks late and a bolt short if he'd been trying to protect Letty's virtue from me.

I knocked on the front door then rubbed my hand across the back of my neck, listening to the shuffle of someone approaching the front door. After a few seconds I heard the snick of the deadbolt being thrown. I knocked again calling out, "Letty?" I was greeted with silence. I didn't hear anyone shuffling away so I assumed it was her. "Letty, come on, talk to me." Still no response. That had to be Letty. I knocked again. "Letty, I can't apologize if you don't open the door."

I kept up in this vein for twenty minutes but I never got a response. My knocking started to reflect my frustration. "Letty, it was an accident. You know I would never hit you, not ever." I groaned in desperation. Finally I started banging on the door without pause. Bang. Bang. Bang. Bang. I don't know how long I kept at it but I only stopped when Vince grabbed my arm to whirl me around. Vince was livid. His clothes and hair were rumpled from sleep but his furious eyes were alert.

"She doesn't want to talk to you brotha," Vince growled at me. Letty must have called him to intervene.

"Then she needs to tell me that," I told him, turning to knock on the door again.

"First beatin' now dictatin'," Vince said, his temper shortening his words. He grabbed my arm again forcing me to turn to look at him straight in the eyes. My eyes were angry too.

"This is between me and Letty. Back off," my voice was low and menacing.

"Your hands made it between me and you. Piss off." I stepped forward to get in his face but Vince grabbed my shirt, the shock of the gesture allowing him to pull me away from the door and onto the lawn. I twisted myself out of his grasp, intending to walk back to the door but Vince ran to stand in front of me, his fists raised. Crazily I stepped forward and Vince finally gave me the punch to me eye that I deserved. He paused before asking, "You gonna leave now?" I shook my head no. He punched me again, this time splitting my lip. He asked the question again, I still shook my head no. I received a third punch to my stomach, then a fourth to my side. He'd keep asking and I kept telling him no. I lost count of the punches that I refused to defend myself against. I deserved this for hurting Letty. Every punch was penance. When I finally fell down, Vince nudged me with the toe of one boot. "Get off her property."

Without a backwards glance he walked away. I didn't waste time. Struggling to my feet I didn't give the house a backwards glance. I hope she saw Vince beat the crap out of me. I allowed myself to hope it would make a difference. Limping back to my house I prayed for a miracle that would get me up the stairs into my bedroom before anyone else saw me. I wasn't that lucky. Mia took one look at me then shook her head, assisting me to the bathroom where she cleaned my cuts quickly and coldly. She used alcohol instead of peroxide on the cuts, her scowl daring me to whimper or complain. I did neither. Once she finished she left me to my own devices, not caring enough to get me ice for my eye. I did not want to traverse the stairs again so I shuffled back to my room and locked the door, partly for privacy but mostly for protection from Vince. Then again, the locked door wouldn't deter him for very long if he was really determined continue where he left off on Letty's lawn.

Somehow I made it to three weeks after my fight with Letty. Day twenty-two to be precise. Twenty-two days, no contact. She refused my phone calls from home begging her to come back to live with us. She returned my letters asking for her forgiveness unopened. She ignored the pleas I left from the garage begging her to at least come to work with us. She never responded to the messages from my cell phone telling her I was an ass. I hadn't gone to her house since the day I got worked over by Vince. He'd finally started talking to me on day three, feeling I had learned my lesson. However he and the rest of the team refused to let me use their cell phones to trick Letty into talking to me. They wouldn't even pass her a word on my behalf. No one was going to get in the middle of our domestic situation. I would have to work things out with her on my own, on her time.

I started my part-time job driving for Johnny Tran on day twenty-two. I'd spent the last week taking an express course on driving a rig, courtesy of one of the various Tran cousins. My mind was full but as I pulled up to the docks with the cab I felt adrenaline push me forward. The job turned out to be really easy. I waited for the other dock workers to hitch up my load then drove to a warehouse across town. I didn't have to do much tonight since Johnny's cousin Lance had his crew overseeing the unloading. I did take a peek at what they unloaded: DVD players, high end TV's, digital cameras, and an intricate looking couch that didn't seem like it could hold my weight. Lance caught me looking and shook his head distastefully. I rolled my eyes. Lance was openly hostile about my relationship with his favorite cousin but I couldn't blame him. They were in business together but I don't think Johnny discussed my employment with Lance. Once the truck was empty, I drove back to one of the trucking lots owned by Tran Senior, parked and made my way over to Johnny's garage.

"Toretto," Johnny called out, wiping his hands on an already greasy rag when I arrived. I gave him a head nod in return. No matter how clean he thought he was getting his hands, I was going to avoid a handshake if at all possible. I did not want grease smeared in the interior of my car. "Not bad for your first night."

"I'm no amateur when it comes to driving," I said in way of reply. He smiled then motioned for me to follow him to his office. He offered me a Corona which I took gratefully then made a production out of going to his desk, opening a small safe, and producing twenty-five large in cash.

"Next week I have two jobs I need you to do. I'll pay you after the second job." I nodded polishing off the Corona. We stood and shook hands. "See you at races."

"Yeah, I'll be there," I said dryly. This was not the same sort of friendship I had with the team. Something about Johnny made me wary to trust him completely. Or perhaps I kept reliving the fight we'd had in high school. Regardless I was always going to be on my guard with Johnny Tran.

Night twenty-seven the team, still sans Letty, showed up at races. I was starting to get annoyed with the rumors. It had been clear that Letty and I were no longer together, considering she no longer showed up at races with us. However the speculation surrounding the breakup was astounding. In case no one was aware, men can gossip worse than women especially when it's about someone in the spotlight. No one came right out and said anything to me directly but I overheard several racers and racer chasers probing the team for a juicy tidbit. Perhaps Letty was pregnant and I dropped her. Perhaps I'd broken her leg for beating Robinson to hide the fact that I may not have been able to beat him myself. Perhaps I had caught her sleeping with my best friend, in which eyes would immediately seek for Vince.

Interestingly enough, that didn't stop women from hanging around me, trying to get me to take them home in Letty's place. Who would be Toretto's next conquest? Of course no one knew besides the team that I had refused to take anyone to bed since Letty left. It wasn't their business and it wasn't good for my reputation. Besides, even if they did know I don't think many would have believed it of me. Before Letty my dating calendar had been overbooked. Wouldn't it make sense that I would return to a different girl every day? I definitely had takers.

All of the speculation made me eager to squash the competition on the streets. I became singularly focused on beating every racer and wannabe that threw down a challenge. But tonight I was making the decision to keep myself out of racing tonight when I saw the familiar purple 240sx round the corner. My heart rate picked up as Letty parked beside Sam then made her way to greet Sam and Hector who were organizing the main event. I felt my heart clench as Sam put his arms around her in a big bear hug, whispering in her ear and making her laugh. My fist closed involuntarily. No matter how much I missed her laughter, I was jealous that some other guy was making her do so. I was even more perturbed that it was Sam. I always had a sore spot when it came to Sam. As others began to notice her arrival, the traffic around their circle increased. Letty just soaked it all in, her arms crossed, Sam's left arm keeping her close to his side. I got so caught up in watching Letty, willing her to look at me, that I didn't notice Joi Tran had approached me.

"Her leg's not broken and she doesn't look pregnant, but then again it could be too early to tell," Joi extended as a greeting. I tore my gaze from Letty to look at her in the face but my nasty retort died on my lips. Joi was still beautiful. She hadn't grown past five-foot-three but her hair was shiny, long, and straight down her back. Her fingers were long and graceful with fussily done up nails. She had on pink eye shadow to match a short pink dress and heels which gave her an additional three inches of height. She'd filled out nicely too, still on the skinny side but with enough curves to make her look exotic and feminine.

"I guess she slept with my best friend then," I supplied, letting the rumor slip from my mouth unchecked. She gave me a half cocked grin.

"She's alive so that can't be it," she said flippantly, shrugging. I stared at her, prompting for her to explain, "With your brawn, I figured you'd kill her and Vince if they betrayed you in that way." Our inappropriate conversation coupled with her brazenness made me laugh. It was the first true laugh I'd had in weeks. She laughed too, poking me in the chest in a flirtatious way that raised my heart rate. It felt good to let go of the tense feelings I'd kept inside since Letty left. I felt myself relax, the loneliness easing slightly as I focused in on Joi.

Instinctively I leaned in closer to her ear in a move that had made me burn moments before when Sam had done it to Letty. "So what do you think broke us up?"

Joi unexpectedly leaned into me, standing on her tip toes to put her arms around my neck and whisper in my ear, "My brother. Thanks for moving my couch for me."

I was shocked she was that intuitive. She smiled at me again then turned to sashay away from me. Because I'd allowed myself to relax, to think of nothing beyond this moment, I'd allowed my libido to take over. Joi's assertiveness, attractiveness, and straight forward femininity had me hooked. If I had been in my right mind, I would have noticed that Letty had been aware enough of me to witness the whole exchange. If I had been aware of anything other than the lust sweeping over me I wouldn't have followed Joi, putting my arms around her so her back was cradled to my front. But I wasn't able to see past anything other than the enticing sexy feelings so I ran my hand across her hip and suggested we go take a more detailed look at her couch. And I woke up on day twenty-eight naked next to Joi Tran in her apartment.

* * *

"Dom, could you hand me that other popcorn string?" Mia asked from her perch on the ladder. It was day seventy-eight, Christmas Eve, and she was re-stringing the tree for the third time this month. For some reason, popcorn kept missing in chunks off the previous strings. I suspected Vince but no one had caught him at it. Yet. I gave my sister a long look. She looked so much like our mother at that moment, her brown hair around her shoulders, her eyes bright with glee, her mouth curved into a slanted smile. I was pleased when Jesse came by with a camera and took a picture of her.

"Baby girl, please tell me this is the last time we have to assist with the popcorn chains," Leon whined. He was sitting on the couch with a bowl of popcorn on one side, a needle in his hand attached to another string. Vince was on the other side of the popcorn, shoving handfuls of the popped kernels into his mouth. Mia shot him a dirty look which slowed the eating slightly. I shook my head at their antics. Jesse seized the moment and took a picture of the pair which immediately deepened Leon's scowl.

"As long as they don't disappear between now and tomorrow morning, these will be the last ones," Mia replied continuing to drape the strings around the top of the tree while removing the partially bare ones.

"So quit you're whining cutie," Vince teased Leon before shoving in another mouthful of popcorn. Mia threw her handful of bare strings at Vince who sniffed them before deciding they weren't worth eating. Mia sighed. I passed the end of the popcorn string to Mia as the doorbell rang, knowing who would be on the opposite side of the door. Joi kissed me quickly on the lips before bustling into the living room. She posed for Jesse who snapped her picture before walking over to retrieve the last of the popcorn strings from Leon. Together with Mia, they finished circling the strands around the tree in record time, then moved to the kitchen to finish the big Christmas dinner. Within thirty minutes we were all sitting at the table, heads bowed, Mia praying for our continued good fortune and for family safety.

After dinner and the obligatory watching of Christmas specials, I walked Joi outside to her car. She never stayed here anyway but tonight she had to go to her parent's house. They would be having Christmas there in the morning. I kissed her then watched her drive around the corner before glancing down the street to look at Letty's house. The move was involuntary but I sighed just the same. Her car was in the driveway but none of the lights were on in the house. Before I could wonder if Letty was awake or asleep, Vince came out of the house.

"You ready brotha?" He asked me, moving towards the Maxima at the end of the driveway. I nodded, jumping in so we could run a quick errand before turning in for the night.

"Dom! Wake up, it's Christmas!" Jesse yelled, banging on the door at nine in the morning. I was thankful he didn't wake us up at six like he had last year.

"Yeah, I'm up," I told him. I made a quick detour to brush my teeth after throwing on some clothes then met up with the rest of the team downstairs. Mia passed me coffee and we all sat together, taking turns to open gifts. I laughed. Most of the gifts were car related, except for the ones from Mia. She'd made sure we got sane things like new clothes and cologne. I saw Vince sniff his with apprehension before leaning over to peck Mia on the cheek. She blushed but was pleased that he liked the gift.

"So Mia, you didn't open your last gift," I told her, standing up and offering her a hand up. She looked confused but took it, following me out of the house. The rest of the team followed us to the curb where a white Acura Integra was waiting.

"You didn't!" Mia exclaimed before rushing to the car to peek inside.

"Well don't just stand there," I said, tossing the keys to her which she caught with a wide smile. She got in the car and immediately started adjusting the seat and mirrors to suit her much smaller frame.

"Hey, pop the hood," Jesse said eagerly. You would have thought this gift was for him the way he was itching to get at the engine.

"Sorry cutie, but that's stock only," Vince laughed. Jesse's mouth fell open at the scandal.

Leon laughed, "Damn dawg that's cold." Mia popped out of the car to stand in front of me, he arms folded across her chest. I mirrored her stance before shrugging.

"I got you a car but ya still ain't racing," I told her, cutting across the old argument quickly. She huffed and Vince stepped up to wrap Mia in a hug.

"Be thankful you're free to go to class and whatever without us," Leon tacked on with a smile.

"Can we at least tune it up?" Jesse asked his face still stuck on shock. "Please?"

I caved with a small smile, "Tune up, no mods."

"And some paint? Please tell me we can at least paint it," Jesse added, taking the opportunity since I'd already begun to cave.

"Hell yeah we have to paint it. It's too plain to be in front of this house," Leon piped up. Mia laughed then pushed back from Vince to stare him in the eyes.

"No Mia. I'm with Dom on this," Vince told her, not falling for the pleading look in her eyes. She rolled her eyes then went back to the car to pop the hood for Jesse. I shoved Vince.

"What?" he grumbled.

"We'll talk about this later," I warned him. He was getting too comfortable with my sister. Leon, Vince and I joined them at the car and started to talk about what would be acceptable upgrades and car colors.

"What about baby blue?" a voice suggested from behind us. My head whipped around to see Letty standing on the curb watching us, her eyes hidden behind shades. Seventy-nine days. She'd waited seventy-nine days to come here and I was shocked to see her.

Mia went over to hug Letty, pulling back with her eyes shining with tears, "Baby blue is cool."

"Yeah, that's girly enough for baby girl," Leon added before hugging Letty and kissing her hair.

"Could we add some lights underneath to liven things up?" Jesse asked. Letty crossed over to the car and looked under the hood, her nose wrinkling in distaste. She ruffled Jesse's hair which caused him to grin but he kept playing under the hood.

"It couldn't hurt to be all show and no go," Vince joked, reaching out to give Letty's hair a slight tug. She chuckled.

"Wait him out chica. He won't stand for anything that slow around here for long," Letty called out to Mia. I huffed.

"I think I'll live in this case," I said dryly. They were not going to goad me into making Mia's car as fast as the rest of ours. I wouldn't be able to stand it if she was hurt in a car crash, speeding along the way the rest of us recklessly did. Letty finally turned to look at me. I still couldn't see her eyes but her eyebrow rose slightly and her mouth went into a lopsided smile. Seventy-nine days and my hands still itched to stroke her skin. I wanted to kiss her, to make love to her. And yet I knew that she wouldn't accept even a hand shake from me. Especially now. Especially since I'd moved on to sleeping with Joi full time.

"Yeah Dom, you'll change your mind in time," Jesse said with a definitive nod of his head. He lowered the hood then made his way inside, everyone else following, leaving Letty alone with me. We stood awkwardly beside the car, looking at it rather than at each other.

"Letty," I said softly, "I'm sorry."

"Yeah, I figured that when you let Vince kick your ass," she acknowledged without heat. We stood there in silence for another minute.

"You knew? Why didn't you let me work it out? We could still work it out," I grumbled.

"Because feeling sorry didn't stop you. You're still working for Johnny," she forced out still staring at the hood her face taking on a sad twisted smile.

"You know why I didn't say no."

"So nothing has changed." She looked tired all of a sudden, her shoulders slumping. I turned to face her head on, lifting her sunglasses to rest on her hair.

"Letty, let's fix this," I said softly, moving towards her.

"You know how to fix things with me."

"I can't."

"Then stick with Joi. She can handle you working for her shady ass brother. I can't." Letty turned and stalked back down the street. I let her go. I did not want to fight Vince on Christmas which is exactly what would have happened if I tried to grab her arm and make her stay.

I yelled to her in feeble attempt to make her stay, "You're not going to stay for lunch?" Christmas day lunch was always a tasty treat of leftovers and tons of desserts. She paused to consider me.

"On one condition."

"What's that?" I would give her anything to make her stay.

"Come up with a story for why we broke up. I'm tired of people thinking I slept with Vince. It's ruining my street cred." She said this in such a deadpan that we both had to laugh.


	8. Implosion

**Disclaimer: Don't own the Fast and the Furious. Sorry.**

**A/N: I listened to the song "Fancy" by The Dream on repeat for four hours. Listen to the song. Pay attention to the music and the way his voice sounds. The lyrics aren't important. I think its the other elements that set the tone for Dom's frame of mind. Thank you for continuing to read this. And special shot out to tfatfreak207, LiasonFan2, and Catalinay for reviewing. P.S. Catalinay, Letty explains why she came for her visit in this chapter.**

* * *

**Chapter 8: Implosion**

Huff.

Sigh.

Huff.

Huff.

I was waiting for Joi to blow the shed down. She'd spent the first two hours in the garage behind the house with me reading her fashion magazines, picking out clothes she thought were "humph" or "hmmm" or "yah". When she started I thought the noises, while less frequent than her page turning, were subtle enough to fade into the background. And so I worked. But now she was starting to get distractingly audible.

I picked up a wrench, loosening a lug nut, preparing to replace all of the nuts holding the wheels in place to ones I'd had custom engraved with "TT" on the tops. It was frivolous to want my father's initials on these things that few people would see and even less would understand but I had decided not to spare any expense where my father's legacy was concerned.

Joi gave another loud, overly dramatic sigh and I put down the wrench with great care. I was trying to decide whether I was going to acknowledge her interruption or continue on as I had for the last ninety minutes: pretending that she wasn't slowly getting on my nerves. I turned to look at her and she met my gaze from her perch on the stool. I guess I _could_ cut her some slack since she'd sat there for three and a half hours.

"So how much longer are you going to work on this car today?" she asked, alternately extending and bending her legs in front of her. I forced myself not to succumb to the irritation I felt. This is why I worked alone, my patience easily tested when I wanted to focus solely on the restoration. I'd told her that I would be here until I finished adding the final touches to the rebuilt charger. She'd agreed to wait.

I took a deep breath, "I'm just replacing the nuts," I said slowly, waving one in front of my face, "for the tires," I pointed to the tire I was working on, "then I'll be finished," I ended, twirling my fingers around in a "wrap it up" signal.

Instead of being angry that I was being condescending, Joi smirked, "Good. Then we'll still have time to run past my place before races tonight." I made eye contact, catching the innuendo. She wanted to have sex before we went out. Perfect. Then maybe I could come home and sleep in my own bed for a change without her throwing a fit. I never let her sleep at my house. Hell, we never had sex here for that matter. I had reverted to my high school behavior: always at her house, never at mine. At least it gave me a built in explanation for the team to cover my absences at night. They still didn't know I was transporting trucks for Johnny Tran.

Frankly I don't know how we lasted this long. It was April and we'd been dating for six months. I knew because Joi baked a cake last week to celebrate our anniversary. She pitched a fit when I didn't have a gift for her. It turns out that Joi was the most girlish woman I'd ever dated. She wanted to be the center of my universe, pitching a fit when she sensed that she wasn't. Thankfully her fits were bouts of pouting, withholding sex, huffing, and the crowd favorite; a case of the waterworks. We constantly spent time together, mostly because she would fall into one of her fits if we didn't. We had differing opinions on "enough" time too. After being confined in Lompoc I craved having personal space. Joi unfortunately felt that any moment we weren't together, and she thought we should be together all the time, was time wasted. I'd given up hope on compromising. It was easier sometimes to give in. For instance, Joi's last bout of crying had bought her space on that stool while I worked on the charger.

I moved to replace the first tire. Joi exhaled, the whine creeping into her voice, "but baybee," I mentally cringed, "how long is that gunna take?"

"A half hour at most." I wanted to take my time so I wouldn't strip or scratch the nuts unnecessarily. They were custom and Harry had gotten me a sweet deal on them. Joi opened her mouth then snapped it closed again when I raised an eyebrow. She must have realized that her talking was delaying the process and though the better of annoying me. I turned back to my project.

* * *

"Dawg tell me that ain't what I think it is," Leon shouted in glee as Joi and I exited the charger later that night. I had to smile. I was extremely proud of my work on the charger and his comment was a stroke to my ego.

"Yeah Dom, I didn't think you were gonna race her," Jesse piped up, his voice edged with hurt.

"I ain't racing her Jes," I reassured him, catching him in a loose head lock. If I had decided to race the charger full time, I would have let Jesse have free reign to upgrade the engine and electrical system to accommodate the demands of a ten second car. But I never planned to race this car. The fact that this was my father's first coffin put the fear of God in me.

"Yep he's just showing off," Mia smirked. I raised my eyebrow causing Mia to grin wider. She was starting to become quite the wise ass.

"Just following in your footsteps," I shot back, jerking my head towards her baby blue Acura. It was, as promised, all show and no go. Mia stuck her tongue out at me. I released Jesse and Hector strolled up. The crowd had made a steady progression past me and the team but I only have them a cursory glance. I was starting to let that all fade into the background at races, the notoriety easier to manage that way.

"Daryl wants in if you're racing tonight," Hector told me casually as we bumped fists in greeting. Daryl was a decent racer who had steadily begun to win his races in the last three months. He'd even beaten Ricky Tran by a nose two weeks ago, boosting his standing in this community. I shook my head no, before trying to goad Hector into taking a look under the hood. We chatted for a few moments about the past and the races he saw my Dad win in the car then he went to organize the main event for the night. I continued to bask in the glow of the praise I was getting on the rebuild when Joi came to stand beside me, her arm curling around my forearm possessively.

"I'm gonna race the rookie," Vince growled out to the team at large. I hadn't noticed his approach but apparently Joi had. Vince had his arm around Letty's shoulders, hinting that he had dragged her over to make nice with the team. Since Christmas Letty had started to slowly filter back into our lives, well mostly with everyone else. I felt she barely tolerated me sometimes but that was better than the stony silence she'd maintained for three months. At least we could stand to be in the same vicinity with each other and exchange pleasantries.

The rest of the team greeted Letty, Jesse excitedly pulling her over to inspect the charger. For a moment I couldn't help myself. I watched her make a slow circuit from bumper to bumper, sometimes trailing her fingers over the paint lovingly. I knew she was thinking of my Dad, remembering how he used the charger as a teaching tool all those years ago. Letty paused then stooped down to examine something on the far side of the car, causing my heart to skip a beat. Did I scratch the paint on my way over here? Did I forget some minute detail? But she stood after a moment, her feelings shrouded under an expression of nonchalance.

"Alright let's ride. We got ourselves a race!" Hector called out to cheers from the crowd. We all split into our respective cars, meeting again at the line. I don't recall the details of the race. I searched the crowd, looking for Letty to ask her what she'd seen but she was gone. By the time I realized it Joi was tugging on my arm complaining that she was ready to go home, Vince the victor of the race. Better luck next time rookie. I made my excuses to Joi, our pre-race sex making her willing to accept my desire to sleep in my bed alone. I happily made my way back to my house, noticing that everyone was still out. I took care to park the charger carefully in the garage then let my curiosity get the better of me. Stooping down to the approximate spot that Letty had been in earlier I started to scan the car for any blemishes I may have missed.

"Huh."

"Find what you're looking for?" My head snapped up immediately at Letty's question. I hadn't heard her approach the garage. She was leaning against the wall, one leg propped up to rest behind her, head tilted, arms crossed. Her posture told me she'd been standing there for a few minutes. The gesture was comfortable for her, so typical Letty, that I felt my heart start to ache. I thought I had put this past me. I'd moved on to Joi and yet…

"Depends. What did you see earlier?" This was easy. We could talk about the car. I wanted to ask her why she'd decided to show up in the garage at all. It was odd considering it was one in the morning and we were no longer together. There was no party here tonight so there was no readymade excuse for her to be in my garage. I felt that line of questioning would make this situation more difficult so I refrained.

Her answer was laced with sadness, "Tony Toretto." I should have known Letty would see; that she would understand. I stood, allowing us each a few seconds to reminisce about my Dad. He was our teacher long before shop class and driver's ed. I didn't want to get into a melancholy mood though so I changed the subject.

"Did Jesse convince you to upgrade your nitrous injection system yet?" Letty gave me a lopsided grin which made my stomach lurch. I worked to suppress the feeling. "Guess the kid couldn't help himself."

"Apparently he's not the only one," Letty mused, her eyes sweeping over the fashion magazine lying haphazardly on the stool. I let my eyes roll heavenward thinking about my frustration with Joi earlier. That wasn't something I wanted to bring up either so I struggled for something to say.

"Mia's having an end of semester thing week after next," I stated badly.

"Can we sit in the car? I wanna ask you something." I was taken back by the request. It was odd but then I remembered that my father had taken Letty for her driving test in this car. Letty had been so proud that he'd let her drive it all the way back to school. She was such a dedicated shop student that she went to make up her missed lesson. Coincidentally that was the day I invited her to the races. I let myself ghost a smile from the memory, motioning for her to get into the drivers seat. We could do better than to sit in the car all night.

"Let's see if you can still handle her," I teased, sliding the key into the ignition and cranking the engine. Letty took her time, adjusting mirrors and the seat just the way she'd been taught and then she raised her eyebrow at me.

"Seat belt." I complied and we were off. We were silent for about ten minutes before she spoke again, "I'm leaving."

I felt my mouth slide open, "That's not a question."

"And you only got a 'C' in English?" she quipped.

"Jerk." She laughed at my surly tone. We rode in silence for a few more minutes and then she pulled up to the beach. We sat in the car with the lights off watching the waves crash against the sand for some time before she spoke again.

"I need you to do something for me."

"Still not a question."

She grinned again then turned to face me in her seat, "Don't be obtuse when my parents ask about me."

"And why would they ask me about you?"

"They don't know that I'm leaving."

"So you're sneaking off?" She nodded. "Are you knocked up?" I spat out indignantly, my throat closing up. I couldn't fathom why she would feel she had to sneak away from her family. She didn't sneak away to take up residence at Casa Toretto so why all the secrecy now? My face was heating up. It better not be Sam's baby.

Letty's eyes narrowed, "Are you high?"

"Are you?" It was the only reason I could think she would run away. Then again, she wouldn't tell me something that off the wall. We may not be together but she knew how I felt about her, she had to know.

"No. What is your problem?" She was asking a lot of questions now, her temper starting to rise. Oddly enough I felt myself getting aroused.

"It's not like you to skulk away Letty."

"It's not like you to…" she started then broke off, taking a deep breath.

"Letty, I never meant to hurt you," I said quietly, changing tact with her when I realized that we couldn't avoid what had torn us apart. Letty got out of the car and started pacing, her strides taking her from the hood to the trunk and back again. I got out stopping her at the trunk on her tenth revolution, placing my hands lightly around her shoulders. She stiffened. I sighed into her hair, "Letty…"

"I forgave you at Christmas you know. That's why I came back. I forgave you then," Letty rushed out, "and yet I am still so angry. I need space to be my own person. Right now, you're part of all the fabric of my life in LA."

"Letty…"

"Dom, you can't say that you aren't. You're King Dom of the LA race scene. I'm just Dom's ex."

"But why me? Why would your parents ask me?"

"Because they know I still have strong feelings for you." The answer took me by surprise.

"Letty you don't have to leave," her words were starting to sink in. She wanted to leave. I could feel my heart slowly crashing. I thought it hurt when she left me to move back in down the street. I could bear it while I knew that she was still revolving in my life. But what she was talking about was much farther away, was much more complete.

"Yeah I do."

"I don't want you to leave."

"Trust me in a few weeks you won't even remember I exist."

"That's crap and you know it," I said, my voice getting rougher. I gripped her arms tighter and stared into her eyes. Joi would have turned to water works but not Letty. She gave as well as she got. Instead of holding me arrested with her hands like I had her now, she stunned me with her words.

"So you crawling up Joi's skirt is a figment of my imagination?"

"I haven't forgotten you Letty. I'm still waiting for you."

"And you show that by screwing someone else."

"Letty you're the one who walked out. I fought for you to come back."

"You didn't do anything to get me back."

"What are you talking about!" I shot out. Vince's pounding stuck out vividly in my mind.

"Here it is, nine months later and you haven't changed anything. You're still running trucks for Tran."

"You know why."

"And you know why I left, why I'm still gone."

"Don't force my hand Letty," I ground out, my temper dangerously close to flaring out of control. But her temper was at flash point too. Her next words confirmed it for me.

"Hell, this is why I need to leave LA. You can screw around yet I'm supposed to be under your control. What I want doesn't matter."

"That's not true." What she wanted mattered. I just couldn't make that fit into what I needed to do right now.

"Tell me something…"

"What, you're going to ask your question now?"

"You really miss me or you just can't handle me moving on?"

"I can come to grips with you moving," I said recklessly. She gave me an evil grin. I don't know why but I got more aroused.

"So you won't mind if I stay in LA and find a guy to fu…" I shook her. She looked stunned for a second and I let her go. "I guess you can't handle me moving on after all."

"Why are you torturing me?"

"I'm not."

"Then what do you want?"

"I wanted to know if you still love me," she said harshly. I stared at her. Her voice softened and took on a feminine quality I rarely heard from her, "Do you? Do you still love me Dom?"

I could tell by the quality of her voice that this is what she wanted to ask me the whole time. I knew instantly what my answer was but I couldn't tell her anymore. I'd mentioned how I felt several times during this argument. Mentally I smiled. We were such idiots, unable to have a civil conversation about our feelings. It was like throwing nitrous oxide onto an open flame. I watched the subtle breeze lift the ends of her hair. The moonlight was strong enough for me to see the sadness in her eyes. My heart hurt, warring with all the reasonable suggestions my mind was making. If I wasn't so selfish I would have let my lips form the words that would release Letty forever. But I am selfish. So I walked towards her, lifting her to sit on the trunk of the charger, stopping only when I was standing between her thighs. I cupped her face in my hands and kissed her tenderly.

It was like we hadn't skipped a beat. She ran her hands over my shoulders, letting her fingers tickle my ears, then gently pushed my head closer to deepen our kiss. My answer to her question was wrapped up in this kiss, or what should have remained a kiss. Instead it grew into more. I would later lie to myself that I put my hands on her legs to keep her steady on the trunk. That she wrapped her legs around my waist to make sure she didn't fall. That I removed her clothes to check that I hadn't bruised her with my earlier handiwork. That I was aware of what was going on around us. But all of that was a lie. I made love to Letty intensely at the beach not caring if anyone could see us, hearing only her whispered words and uninhibited cries. I gave Letty everything I had: my body, mind, soul, and heart right there in the moonlight. And when I took her home, I kissed her the same way I had at the beach, tenderly filled with a love I couldn't verbalize. And when her parents came over to ask me if I knew where she'd run off to, I felt my world implode completely.

* * *

"Yo Dom you need to sign this," Vince called out to me, breaking the trance I was in. I walked to the counter where Harry and Vince had been discussing the latest Veilside body kits. I looked down at the bill but couldn't really make out what the heck was on it. I shook my head trying to focus instead on the bottom line. Whatever. I didn't care. I signed it.

"So Dom, have you given any thought to the races in the desert?" Harry asked me.

"Huh?" I said, not really focusing on the conversation.

"What races?" Vince asked curiously.

"They're calling it 'Race Wars'. It's supposed to be an organized way for street racers to compete from all over."

"Oh yeah? Where at?" Vince asked, interested but trying not to show it.

"Here's the flyer," Harry said eagerly, pushing one towards each of us. I took it automatically but didn't really read it. "Hey, if you're interested I could sponsor your team." I looked at Harry quizzically. Sponsor us for what? I looked down at the flyer trying to wrap my head around it.

"Thanks Harry," Vince told him.

"Did the transmission guy find DT's?" Harry asked always curious if the business he was sending our way.

"Yeah, and so did three of his friends. Why do you think we need all these extra parts?" Vince answered laughing. They shot the breeze for a few more moments then Harry's new flunky employee came in letting us know that our order was loaded up and ready to go.

Vince and I rode back to the garage, making quick work of unloading our latest shipment of parts before recommencing the work we'd left behind. Well Vince went back to working, the cacophony rising with his added tool use. I was on a creeper staring blankly at the undercarriage of a customer's rx-7. Since Letty had left last month I had ceased to function properly. And it was noticeable. Vince had started to pick up where I was slacking here at the garage and the rest of the team avoided saying her name. Oddly enough I felt I was able to focus fully when I was running trucks for Tran. Deep down I knew Letty would feel vindicated if I got caught or hurt and I didn't want to give her the satisfaction. This was my act of defiance towards her in the same way her leaving LA was her act of defiance towards me. Time slipped by me and I was brought back to reality by a tapping on the sole of my shoe. I pushed myself into the open then sat up.

"We're closing up," Leon said before moving to remove the day's buildup of garage grime from his hands. I watched Jesse, Leon, and Vince shut the place down then we all headed home. Mia had beaten us there, dinner already waiting for us. Jesse happily reached for the rolls; his lips kissing the crust by the time Mia teased him that he should say grace.

"Past the gums and past the teeth, I am hungry so pass the meat," he rattled off causing them to laugh. I gave Jesse a small smile and passed him the fried chicken. I wasn't feeling very hungry so I pushed my food around, my stomach slowly filling with more Corona than the meal Mia had prepared. No one remarked on it though.

"So what do you think about races in the desert next month?" Vince asked the table at large.

"What races?" Jesse asked eagerly. "Can we go?"

"Harry mentioned organized street races kid," Vince started, pulling the flyer out of his pocket and handing it to Jesse. Leon snatched it from him to read the details aloud.

"So we underground racers can complete without fear of reprisal from the cops for a weekend in June."

"In other words its two days of cars, women, and booze," Mia stated blandly.

"Hell yeah, I'm in. Please say we can go," Jesse begged, looking at me. I sighed.

"Can we afford to go?" Vince asked me. I didn't know. Could we afford to close up shop for three days?

Leon spoke up, "Well if the rest of the race world is out there, can we afford _not_ to go?"

"It would be good free publicity for you to beat the breaks off every team there," Mia added, a funny gleam in her eye. Perhaps she realized that there would be a lot of different guys there, guys who may not know enough about her family to be afraid to ask her out.

"Lots of new competition Dom," Jesse added to try to draw my vote.

"It costs a buck fifty for each racer to enter for a chance at the overall ten grand prize," Vince added. Six hundred dollars for me, Vince, Jesse and Leon to race. Mia would not race. Organized or on the streets, I forbade it.

"But I bet they'll be a lot of side betting too," Leon piped up.

"Please say we can go," Jesse whined. I looked over at Mia who I could tell was doing the financial burden calculations in her head, her brow creasing slightly. I wasn't keeping exact tabs on that either but I figured we could probably make it if we kept things tight for the rest of the month.

"It could get expensive," Mia admitted. Yeah it could be really expensive if we each put up cash for side bets and lost.

"But only if we lose," I told her, feeling reckless. That third Corona was starting to give me a fuzzy feeling around the edge of my brain. For a moment I mused that I should have eaten more. "Besides Harry said he'd sponsor us."

Vince grunted, "He'll want something in return."

"Well set it up anyway," I told him. Vince scowled. He didn't liked owing people less than I did.

"It's probably _Racer's Edge_ decals or mentioning we go to him for parts," Leon interjected sensing Vince was getting agitated.

"So are we going?" Jesse asked impatiently.

"Looks that way," I sighed. Jesse whooped with glee. Vince gave me a sour look which I ignored, retreating to my bedroom. I stripped then lay under the cool covers, willing myself to fall asleep quickly. But sleep didn't come. Instead I heard them living downstairs: watching TV, popping popcorn, making jokes, answering the phone. About ten the doorbell rang. I prayed that it wouldn't be Letty's mom breaking down again to ask me if I'd heard from her daughter. But it wasn't her. I heard the familiar footfalls ascend the stairs then a small knock before the bedroom door opened.

"Dom?" I didn't answer. I was hoping she would go home if she thought I was asleep. No such luck. Joi closed the door gently then took off her heels before crawling on the bed, straddling my back. She whispered my name in my ear and I grunted a response. I felt her hands whisper over my shoulders, her hair skimming over my skin as she bent over to rest her upper body on my back. It was a move I could have appreciated before but now it just irritated me. Couldn't she tell that I wanted to be left alone?

"What do you want Joi?" I asked tiredly.

"Nothing baby. I missed you," she whispered. I was proud of her, her voice almost devoid of the pouting edge.

"I'm not in the mood," I stated. Her hands stilled for a minute, and then she started to rub me again, this time letting her hands skim along the sides of my stomach.

"Come on," she coaxed, the pout starting to creep out, "I can make you feel better."

"Probably not." I didn't care if I was hurting her feelings. I just wanted her out of here. I wouldn't give her what she wanted even if my body had been willing. It wasn't.

"Dom don't forget that I'm your girlfriend," she said, the attempt at being seductive gone. She sat up and slapped my back. "I won't stand for being ignored." I didn't dignify her statement with a response so she crawled off me, slipping her heels back on before she stomped out of the house. If I had been smart I would have broken up with her then. But all I could think about was how I deserved her attitude and small spurt of violence. Plus the selfish part of me wasn't willing to cut Joi loose just yet. With Joi on my arm I could pretend to the racing scene that Letty's disappearance wasn't eating me alive. I could pretend I was going to her house when I was actually going to transport trucks for her brother. But I mostly wanted to prove to myself that I could make a relationship work, even if my heart wasn't in it.


	9. Segregation

**Disclaimer: Don't own The Fast and the Furious. 'Nuff said.**

**A/N: You might recognize some lines from The Fast and the Furious though. It had to be done. Still don't own 'em.**

* * *

**Chapter 9: Segregation**

"Jesse, this is the last time I'm ripping these tires off," I warned, staring him down to get the point across.

"Um ok," Jesse said distractedly dismissing my statement as quickly his mind would dismiss anything not related to math or cars. I shook my head.

"Why are we doing this?" Leon asked, finally removing the last tire from his Skyline. Mia strutted past him, shoving an old newspaper in his hands. Leon sighed then started covering the rotors near the calipers. I shook my head before diligently doing the same.

"I think this will look great. Make the cars look faster," Mia chirped out, slapping the last of her papers into Vince's chest then making her way back to the Acura.

"You're the only one who needs to _look_ faster," Leon countered. Mia stuck out her tongue at him and he replied in kind. I grinned. The build up to Race Wars had brought me out of the mood I'd been in since Letty left LA. I let the preparations become the focus of my life. I planned upgrades with Jesse. I practiced with Vince. I talked strategy with Leon. I assisted Mia with the details: sleeping arrangements, food, and when we would close the shops.

Jesse was already putting paint on his calipers by the time the rest of us grumbled to a start. I dipped the brush methodically in the glossy black paint, trying to picture how this was worth our time. I fixed my mouth to complain and then I got a glimpse of Jesse going to help Mia. His tongue was sticking out the side of his mouth as he concentrated on getting the baby blue paint evenly onto her calipers. The complaint died on my lips. He'd suggested we all do our calipers to give our cars some flash and I think it was his way to include Mia in the festivities. I wouldn't make him feel crappy about this mindless task. We each had a Corona while we waited for the paint to dry, then came the task of putting the wheels back on the cars. It was worth it to make Jesse happy. It was worth it to make anyone happy these days.

Two days later I was glad that we had listened to Jesse. By Friday the roads had become a river, the cars flowing to join the sea that was the abandoned Air Force base where the races would take place the following morning. I allowed myself to get caught up in the visual variety of all the cars that made up the sea, noting the racers cocky enough to pop the hood for people to get a peek. I'd ask Jesse to give them a look if I ran into him. I also noticed the way some of the racers had used their cars more as an artistic canvas than for just manufacturer decals. One girl had an elaborate dragon painted from hood to rear bumper that made me thankful that our plain-by-comparison cars had paint on their calipers.

I was surprised at how fast the team had disbursed into the crowd, leaving me wander alone. For a moment I thought that I would get a chance to be anonymous but that was quickly dispelled when I heard my name. I turned to find Jackson from San Francisco smiling at me. I grinned. The guy had been really cool when he came to race me a couple of months ago, taking the ribbing from the LA crowd in stride. I strode over to Jackson, giving him a hand shake and quasi-man hug.

"Heard you're still the racer to beat in LA," Jackson said conversationally, offering me a beer which I took more out of politeness than desire to drink. I usually stuck to Corona's exclusively.

I choked down a swallow keeping my voice light, "You'll have to race me to find out."

Jackson laughed, "I'll make sure to do that."

"Hmm." We fell into a comfortable silence sitting under the tent he had erected to shade his crew from the desert sun.

"So where is the rest of the Toretto clan?"

I waved the bottom of my bottle to the flowing waves of people making their way around the site, "Somewhere in all of this."

"Well feel free to chill with us," Jackson said, offering me another beer which I declined for water instead. Inebriation would not help me win races tomorrow. We started talking about cars and people that we knew were showing up to race, the crowd milling around thinning and thickening as time rolled on. Three hours later I was still hanging out with Jackson, none of the team bothering to look for me or call.

We started playing poker for fun with two more members of his crew and soon the trash talk had attracted more of his friends. I let myself relax and get into being around people that didn't know any more about me than the fact that I was a street racer. Someone found some chips and so we could play for bragging rights to keep things friendly. More people started to show up including Jackson's girlfriend and her entourage. I was offered another beer which I turned down.

"Come on man, have one more. We need you to level the playing field," some guy named Kessler said, raising the stakes.

I sighed looking at my royal flush, "Tell you what, you find me a Corona and I'll drink it." I didn't think anyone would find it so I was surprised when a girl with curly blond hair came to stand behind me, a Corona ready for me in her outstretched hand. I took it giving her an appreciative glance from head to toe. She was pretty but not overdone. My glance was enough encouragement for her to stand behind me and start rubbing my shoulders. Jackson gave me a lopsided grin which I casually returned, shaking my head. Sometimes women made it so easy. We started playing another hand.

"I'm Mindy and I would love for you to pop my clutch," the girl purred low, her breath tickling my ear. The line was lame but I gave a tiny laugh that shook my shoulders. Jackson grinned wider at me. He and the rest of the guys could tell she was trying to pick me up. I paused to turn my face to her and she responded by moving her lips a quarter inch away from mine.

"I bet you do," I smirked, turning my face away to keep up the pretense. Mindy, feeling that she had me claimed for the night, proceeded to prop herself on the arm of the chair with her legs in my lap and her arms around my neck. I was forced to play around her while she whispered naughty jokes in my ears and proceeded to share my Corona with me. Even with her added distraction I was able to keep my mind in the game long enough to win a few more hands.

That's how Joi found me as the sun started to set: five cards in my hand, a stack of chips in front of me, and a girl sprawled across more of me than the chair, her slender arms resting on either side of my neck holding a Corona someone had found for me. We were all just having a good time. I could barely remember the name of the girl. Cindy, Wendy, or whatever her name was must have recognized Joi's glare as a warning to back away from me quickly because she swung her legs off the arm of the chair and moved swiftly over to chill with Jackson's girlfriend. I expected a yelling fit but what I got was something else. Joi gave me an over the top smile then turned to stalk away. You know, just when you think you can predict what someone will do…

I finished playing two more hands then trudged across the field to the camper Mia and I had purchased second hand for this occasion. I was dead tired, having kept up the charade that I wasn't feeling thrown off by Joi's reaction. Jackson promised to seek me out for a race the following morning so I allowed myself to push my girlfriend woes out of my mind. I was very glad I did the following day. I raced Jackson, Kessler, and a bunch of other guys, making headway into winning the jackpot. I was proud of Jesse. He managed to win his first race but lost his second. He wasn't a very skilled racer which didn't seem to bother him at all.

"Sorry I lost the money Dom," he said sheepishly. I ruffled his mousy brown hair.

"It's cool Jes," I told him. And it really was cool. I was getting caught up in the euphoria of being at a race where I didn't have to fear getting busted by the cops. It was fun having a wider range of competition too.

"Yeah Jesse," Mia threw in, entwining their arms together, "besides your best work is under the hoods of our cars."

"Well, every car but yours you mean," Jesse said laughing. Mia gave him a light punch in the arm. They laughed before joining the queue of people watching the races. Leon and Vince eventually joined us, each advancing to the same level as me by winning five races a piece. Five more wins stood in between us and winning the large jackpot. To celebrate I broke out the grill and we invited our friends to an impromptu party at our camp. The booze started flowing and people started to dance. I started looking for Leon to ask for his help with the grill when I saw Joi sauntering up to me. I didn't know how to play off what she'd seen the night before but Joi surprised me by coming to my side, reaching on the tip of her toes to kiss me on the cheek.

"Baybee! You were so great today," she told me, her heels returning to the ground, her arms wrapping around me waist.

Instinctively I wrapped my right arm around her waist then bent to give her a long peck on the lips. She threw herself into the kiss and soon we were making out, my mind vaguely remembering that I might want to come up for air to turn the burgers before they burned.

"Damn, if you're getting this much attention for making it to day two, imaging if you win," Kessler's voice sounded from nearby.

I broke the kiss to flip him a cocky half smile, "Burger or chicken?" He laughed at me, realizing this was as much acknowledgement I would give his comment. I didn't miss the slight tightening of Joi's arms around me.

Jackson met up with us then, "Don't mind Kess, he's smarting 'cause you flattened him in his fourth race." Kessler scowled but I let my grin widen by an inch.

"Yeah, well finish cooking and we'll find out if I can't make your luck change," Kessler challenged as he pulled a deck of cards out of his pocket.

"You're on," I said pointing at him with the spatula. He grinned and the two of them walked away to gather more challengers for poker.

"Baybee," Joi whined. My eye started to twitch. "I was thinking we could really celebrate alone."

"But what about our guests?"

"They can wait," she told me, trying to interject seduction into her voice.

I bent to nip her ear, pulling her even closer to me, "Don't worry, we'll celebrate alone after a few hands."

Joi pulled away from me then, her face turning into a frown. I ignored her, knowing that she was well on her way to a full pout. I just wasn't in the mood today. I wanted to continue feeling the euphoria from winning all my races today. I pulled the last of the burgers and chicken off the grill, taking a few more moments then necessary to dampen the coals so they would burn out then grabbed her hand, making my way towards the table of guys waiting to start playing poker. Joi noticed the direction we were walking in then dug in her heels. The pressure made me stop and turn to look at her, an eyebrow raised.

"What?" I asked sharply.

"No. I am not going to let you ignore me again like last night," she said equally as sharp, her voice getting loud. Some of the guys turned to look at us. I approached her then gripped her face between my hands, planting a kiss on her pursed lips.

"Joi, I don't want to fight. Not tonight."

"Then pay attention to me."

"I am, and I will later too."

Her eyes narrowed and her voice got hard, "I'm your girlfriend. I should always come first."

"But you're not," I countered. I'd let her figure out whether I was dumping her or putting her off for the moment. I turned then joined the crowd at the table. Vince dealt the first hand and we started to play. I never noticed when Joi left but I assumed she must have because the blond from the night before showed up at my side offering me a Corona with a wide smile. Kessler just raised an eyebrow and I rose my bottle to him in mock salute.

The following morning I woke up with the blond sprawled across my body. I stretched and she shifted, the covers falling to reveal her naked body to me. I thought I had sent her home. Huh, guess not. I looked over at the clock and saw I had about ninety minutes before I needed to be at the line. Lindsey, or whatever her name was, would need to go. I started rubbing her shoulders to wake her up when I noticed something shift in my peripheral. Turning my head I saw Joi sitting on a chair across from me, her face set into a hardened mask. We stared at each other for a few moments before the girl woke up, diverting our attention to her.

"Mmmm, hi," she purred sleepily, clearly not noticing that there was someone in here besides me and her. I looked at her for a moment before I reached for her dress from last night. Joi threw it at us, drawing the attention back to her presence. The girl frowned then sat up, straddling my hips with no shame. She grabbed her dress, taking her time to shake it out before lazily pulling it on. She climbed off my body taking time to strap on her heels before striding to the door.

"Don't forget your panties whore," Joi called out viciously.

The blond girl looked at Joi loftily before replying calmly, "I wasn't wearing any sweetie." She left, her head held high. The slam of the door returned us to the staring contest. After a few moments I decided to get up, pulling on clothes in a slow careful way that told her I was wary but not scared of her. I made it though turning my back and brushing my teeth before Joi got up to stand in my face.

"So did you remember her name or did she even get a chance to tell you?" Joi asked frostily.

"It's Mandy," I made up on the fly. I know she'd told it to me but I couldn't remember it.

"Tell me something, was it worth it?"

"Was what worth it?" I started pulling on my shoes. I wanted to be able to walk away as soon as possible. I didn't want to dignify this relationship with an argument. I think I was actually happy that I was getting an easy out. Frankly Joi's behavior had been grating on my nerves for months.

"Dom, I am not going to stand for you cheating on me," she said changing tactics, seeing that I wasn't going to fight.

"I don't expect you to."

Joi looked at me angrily, the dismissal in my tone rubbing her nerves the wrong way. She bent her head to the side, her eyebrows drawing in closer together, "Are you breaking up with me?"

"I'm just doing what I should have done a while ago," I stated honestly. I should have broken up with Joi after the first couple of weeks, when she started strangling my free time. Selfishly I'd held onto Joi to keep myself from feeling lonely. But I had also kept her close because I knew dating Johnny's sister was probably the biggest blow I could land on Letty. Joi exploded, the shrill yelling almost as shocking as her stamping her foot and flailing her arms wildly.

"You're not breaking up with me! I'm not letting you! You think I'd just slink away like some tramp then you're wrong! I am not going to be embarrassed this way. I JUST WON'T!"

I took a step back, shocked at her tantrum. It was like nothing I'd ever experienced before and it was a huge turn off. Her face got really red, her eyes were half crazed. I worked to placate her.

"Joi, I think it would be more embarrassing for me to date other girls while we're still together," I said evenly. It was if she hadn't even heard me.

"I refuse to have you screwing tramps, picking tramps, over me. OVER ME!"

"I'm not choosing anyone over you. I don't think this," I pointed my finger between the two of us, "is going to work." I started walking towards the door, hoping that my dismissal would end the yelling but it didn't. She followed me to my car, throwing one of her shoes which hit me square in the back. I turned slowly. I was not going to acknowledge it. She deserved to be a bit peeved after what I had subjected her to in the last two days.

"Fine, go back to Letty. I should have known if you couldn't keep that skank you would be worthless to me." I closed my eyes, gathering my strength to keep calm. I picked up the shoe and started to cross over to Joi. I felt like clubbing her with the stupid thing.

"Dom, don't," Mia yelled. I stopped mid-stride. I looked to my left and saw Mia, Jesse, Leon, and Vince staring at us. I guess they heard the commotion Joi had stirred up and had come to investigate.

"Let him come, let him try," Joi said in a mocking voice. I started towards her again.

"Dom," Vince warned starting to move towards us but I held up a hand, reaching Joi to hand her the shoe with more force than was necessary.

"We're done," I said angrily. She threw the shoe back at me, hitting me hard in the chest. I grabbed her shoulders, picking her up off her feet, turned her around to face away from the camp then set her down. I picked up her shoe and tapped her behind before I put it in her hand and walked away.

"See you at the line?" Leon asked cautiously. I didn't even answer him but drove off in the direction of the line to wait out my turn in peace.

I wasn't really angry with Joi. She was hurt and I could understand why. I really hadn't been a very decent boyfriend to her at all. But I think that I could have felt bad for her if she hadn't insulted Letty. I didn't have time to contemplate why the insult about a woman who had walked away from me more than once should raise my blood pressure.

I felt relief when it was finally time for me to race. It allowed me a chance to focus on something other than my female problems. I put one opponent then another into the rx-7's dust, my elation escalating. Three more races between me and the top prize. In between races I watched as Leon and Vince moved up too. For a moment I thought about how weird it would be to race Vince or Leon for the title and then Leon lost his third race of the day to Johnny Tran. Crap. That left me and Vince in the running, both of us winning our third races.

Vince was slated to go up against some dude from kid from Arizona in the next heap so I joined Mia, Jesse, and Leon at the sidelines to watch the race. We were all carefully avoiding talking about my messy breakup, keeping the atmosphere light. Vince's race was next up when I felt a strong arm on my shoulder turn me around before the punch landed on my cheek.

Angrily I started throwing punches and the fight broke out. It took me a minute to realize that I was rolling around on the ground trading blows with Johnny Tran, his boys being held off by Leon and some security guards. I struggled to stop Johnny, finally getting him in a head lock before one of the guards broke through to break us up.

"What the hell man?" I spat, feeling blood drip from my split lip.

"I thought you'd learned your lesson in high school Toretto. Disrespect my sister and you disrespect me," Johnny threw back, still spoiling to fight.

"Your sister disrespected herself when she threw a fit outside my door this morning," I said hotly. I was really irritated that we were fighting over my breakup with Joi.

"You didn't have to hit her Toretto," he said angrily. _What?_And then I looked over at Joi, her face smug and I took in what he was saying to me. That little wench had lied on me.

"I never touched your sister," I said turning to walk away. I would need some ice for my nose. It stung.

"Don't you turn your back on me," he yelled at me.

I paused and turned back to him, pointing at him incredulously, "We're not on your block. Watch how you talk to me." The crowd around us 'oohed' in unison.

"That's how you're going to play it?" he mocked me. I nodded. "No problem Toretto. You make sure when we're in LA you stay on your block and I'll stay on mine."

"You stay away, I'll stay away," I agreed. Shaking off the guard, Johnny and the rest of the Tran entourage turned and headed away. Joi had the audacity to wink at me before she slunk of behind them.

"Yo brotha, what the hell was that all about?" Vince asked, grasping that the fight had ended more than my relationship with Joi. He clearly had finished the race but not made it back in time for the fisticuffs.

I sighed, "I'll tell you later." Vince nodded and I knew he would badger me about it later at home. Mia, bless her, slapped an ice filled zip lock bag in my hand and a wet rag in the other. I cleaned my face as best I could before placing the ice on my nose. Although I hadn't been punched in the eyes, I felt the bottom halves of each swelling slightly courtesy of the blow to my nose.

"Uh Dominic, are you gonna be able to race like that?" Jesse asked timidly, his Boston accent really thick after all of the excitement. Oh yeah, I needed to finish racing.

Leon grabbed the keys to the rx-7 then proceeded to wait in the queue as it slowly wound its way to the line, buying me time to keep the ice on my swollen nose and eyes and long as possible. But it was no use. As I took my place in the car I felt distracted by the implications of what had gone down and my messed up face. I could see the guy count us down then wave us off. I felt myself shift, first into second, second into third, but I couldn't keep it together. I lost.

I didn't bother to stay with the team to watch Vince in his last race. I just wanted to get out of there. I made my way back to the camp and started to pack as quickly as possible. That's how they found me an hour later, the camp dismantled and my car already loaded to tow back to the garage. We made our way back home, no one bothering to stay together and drive in a group. Everyone sped off, even Mia with her stock engine beating me home since I was driving the camper and towing my car. I didn't care though. Four hours and a lot of aspirin later I finally decided I couldn't avoid being at home. I saw that everyone had parked in the driveway, leaving me plenty of space to park in front of the house so they would be able to see my approach. Great.

I entered the house to find the team tensed in the living room pretending to watch TV. I slumped into an arm chair and a Corona was thrust into my fingers. I opened up my eyes to see Leon give me a shrug before he began to chug his own. I took a fortifying pull from the bottle, letting the hint of lime tickle my tongue before I cleared my throat and began to explain all about the job I had been doing for Tran. I expected them to interrupt but they let me tell my story without comment. When I finished I realized they were probably surprised that I had shared that much information with them in the first place without a lot of prying involved.

Mia was the first to speak up, "Wow. Well that explains a lot."

"I'm surprised you're not yelling," I told her ruefully.

"Oh, I think you're a friggin' idiot," she said hotly, "but you are a male so…"

Leon smiled indulgently before lightly kicking her in the shin. She scowled and stuck her tongue out at him, a gesture he was willing to return in kind. The childishness made me smile.

"So I'm guessing Tran's turf comment encompasses the whole team," Leon stated.

"Yep," I clarified. I didn't want anyone to take a chance. I'd seen some of Johnny's nasty side while I worked for him and I wasn't going to pretend that he wouldn't retaliate against my family in his anger.

"You really should stop hitting women Dom," Vince growled at me.

I shot him a nasty look, "You were there. I barely spanked her."

"Yeah, you've done worse with some of the chicks you've brought in here pumpkin," Leon teased.

Vince shrugged his shoulders then took another swallow of his Corona, "I guess you're right."

Mia rolled her eyes. Jesse frowned then spoke up, "So does this mean we can't go to Chinatown?"

"I don't think…" I started but Leon cut across me.

"What do you need in lil' China dawg?"

" 'Tronics are so cheap down there," Jesse said sullenly. I gazed into his sad eyes and felt my resolve loosen a little.

"Look, don't go down there alone and stay away from any Tran businesses. I'm sure you'll be alright," I told him. I downed the last of my beer. "I'm going to bed."

I stood to make my way upstairs when Vince called for me, "Yo Dom."

"Yeah."

He threw a large wad of cash on the coffee table and I looked at it in confusion.

"Just 'cause you're a loser doesn't mean we all are," he said nonchalantly. Leon and Jesse burst into guffaws. I saw the twinkle in Mia's eyes. Vince had won at Race Wars. I shook my head, giving him a sheepish grin. He burst into maniacal laughter which set off the rest of them. I trudged upstairs. I would _never_ live this crap down.


	10. Accelerant

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything. I'm just having fun.**

**A/N: First, thanks to all of the poeple who have been reading, reviewing, and adding the story to their alerts. I am so flattered that you are enjoying what I am writing. That being said:**

**Ok. So I am almost done with the companion piece Evolving Into Me which tells Letty's story of why she is away. However, I have also written chapter 11 of this story... but I don't think it would be fair post it until I finish the other story. While you don't have to read the companion piece, I feel that for those who are reading it, you'll have a richer understanding of Letty's behavior when she returns to LA. All this plays out in the upcoming chapter. Fortunately I have an extended vacation. I am making it my priority to get things rolling at a faster pace to finish up there so I can finish up her. Bear with me ~ Tonks1**

* * *

**Chapter 10: Accelerant**

"Oh yeah girl, you missed it. It was awesome. But don't tell the boys that, they'll never let me live it down," Mia's voice carried as she moved around her bedroom two weeks later. I looked at the door and frowned, annoyed because I'd forgotten to close it completely when I stumbled in two hours ago. As a result Mia's side of the cell phone call had finally shaken me from oblivion. I heard the rustle of bags then hangers being shifted in her closet.

"Erm, ah, no," Mia stammered out then followed with a giddy laugh, "They were occupied with other…Well I guess when you put it that way, nothing. Well maybe it was Dom's fist fight with Johnny Tran or Vince winning the top prize."

I perked up. Who in our circle of friends wouldn't know about my dramatic break up with Joi? And who would Mia be willing to call to pass that information along? For a moment I strained to hear more of the conversation. If I had to be up then I guess I could make myself useful. Mia started laughing fit and I quickly dismissed the conversation, deciding that had to be one of her annoying girlfriends from school. I was contemplating gathering enough energy to shuffle across the floor when she whispered something then shut her door. I heard the gentle muffle of her voice but couldn't make out the words. It was enough to get me back into the groove of sleep for a couple more hours.

When I awoke the second time it was five in the afternoon. Lazily I pushed myself out of bed, showered, then shaved as an afterthought. The growl in my stomach helped lead my feet downstairs into the kitchen. It took me a second to really soak in why I came to a complete halt at the door. Flour covered the table, a large cloth covered one of the counters, and a large metal pot of sauce simmered on the stove. My ears perked up for noise outside of the kitchen but I found none, confirming my suspicions. Mia was making homemade sauce and ravioli, complete with handmade noodles… I approached with caution.

"Mia?" She was standing facing away from me, her hands diligently filling the empty pasta squares with my favorite filling: ricotta cheese, spinach, and mushroom.

"Yeah, Dom?" she replied absently, now adding tops to the squares then mashing them closed on the ends with a fork.

I went to the sink to grab a rag and start cleaning the table before responding, "So ravioli…"

"That's obvious," she huffed. The completed ravioli were being transferred to the white cloth, covered, before being abandoned for the process to start again with a new batch.

"There's an awful lot there."

"You do want the rest of us to eat after Vince has had his share right?"

I laughed then proceeded to start cleaning up around Mia: sweeping the floor, putting away discarded ingredients and finally making my way to the sink to wash dishes. I was standing to Mia's left, giving me a profile look at her face. It was a combination of sadness, frustration, and desperation. In other words, it was the reason why she was doing something as maniacal as making dinner from scratch to calm her nerves.

"So what's for dessert?" If Mia was making dessert from scratch too I may just go out to join the guys wherever they were hiding, uh, hanging out.

"Vince said he'd pick up Cannoli's and ice cream," Mia said, a wan smile appearing on her face.

"So are you going to tell me what's bothering you?" My stomach grumbled. I finished the last dish in the sink before moving to the fridge to grab the makings of a turkey sandwich. Mia grabbed another big pot and started filling it with water. I quickly moved to pick it up and place it on a free eye before she could strain herself. The nasty look she threw me hastened my retreat to my sandwich. She started throwing in pinches of salt and waited for the water to boil before adding the ravioli's to cook. I just watched, knowing that my help had been tolerated…barely.

"Dom, you do know that I'm a woman right?"

I coughed around a bite of my sandwich. Mia went to the fridge, pulled the top off a Corona, and handed it to me forcefully. I drank.

"Thanks. Yeah, I know."

"I figured you did. I mean, that's why you pick up heavy pots for me and expect me to cook all the time."

"I don't expect you to cook all the time," I said hastily, "but yeah, I try to take care of you."

She waved off the comment impatiently, "I know. But do you realize that Letty is a woman too?"

"I know she's a…"

"You know she's _female_ but do you recognize her as a _woman_ Dom?"

"Where is this coming from?" I countered, knowing that any answer I gave wouldn't be believed until she finished letting off steam.

"I know you're good at treating Letty like she's indestructible but she's not. And no matter how great she is at racing or tooling around in the garage she's not one of the guys."

"But Letty is like one of the guys. She not a…she's not…she probably kick my ass for the stunt I just pulled with you and the water just now."

"I know it's easy to confuse her liking to hang with the guys with being like one of the guys."

"I don't see a difference."

"Since she stepped foot in Papi's garage she's been proving that she can be as tough as you and Vince. And that translated well in shop class and at the races when she serves guys their junk in their hands. But it doesn't stop her from wanting to be treated like she's more than a buddy sometimes."

"I do treat her as more than a buddy. I'm not sleeping with Vince am I?" Mia gave a half smile. "I treat her different because she's as tough as Vince. She's just not as…frilly as you are."

"Just 'cause she's tough," Mia started then decided to try a different route, "The two of us express our femininity differently. I do it with dresses; she does it in leather pants. But we're still both women."

"I get it. What's your point?" I asked feeling agitated.

"Call her. Tell her how you really feel. And don't do it like you're talking to Vince."

"Mia, I've done that. I did that for months. And in case you haven't noticed, she disappeared."

Mia had the grace to look guilty before she turned to pull the cooked ravioli out of the big pot and replace them with another round of uncooked pasta. She mumbled, "Actually I caught her on her cell today."

I took a slow drink from the Corona, taking extra care to set it down without noise.

"I miss her Dom. This whole situation is just wrong. Papi…"

"Don't play the Papi card Mia," I cut across her angrily, "She left on her own. She'll come back on her own."

Mia turned to look at me again, rolling her eyes, "Typical."

"I heard what you said."

"Obviously not."

"What do you want from me!"

"She needs to know she's needed. You can't wait for her to figure it out on her own."

"Again, all stuff I told her before." I thought of the last time I saw Letty. I did more than just tell her how I felt that night.

"Yeah, but you went on to date Joi and pretend that it didn't matter if she was around or not," Mia continued, "In fact you've been slumming around ever since you broke it off with Joi."

"I don't have to explain myself to you Mia," I said defensively, standing up to get in her face. She stood her ground, poking a finger into my chest.

"Cut the shit and call her."

"What time is dinner?" I asked, changing the subject. I needed to go for a drive to clear my head.

"Six. The guys are probably hiding at DT's," she said in a dismissive tone. I hugged her and she hugged me back. No matter how unsettled the conversation had made me I knew Mia was looking out for me in her convoluted, female way. Grabbing my keys I sped off to the garage, not surprised to find Leon, Jesse, and Vince lazing around inside the computer in the office. Jesse was totally focused on his latest pet project, trying to find alternate ways to wire the cars for hidden nitrous systems. The computer screen was littered with layouts and digital pictures of Vince's current wiring schematic.

"I don't know Jesse," Vince was telling him, "I'm not sacrificing my shots for aesthetics."

"Dawg, you know what aesthetics means?" Leon laughed. I heard the sound of a book smacking into something.

"Are you three going to destroy my office," I drawled casually, leaning against the door frame.

"So is Mia cool?" Leon asked a huge smile on his face and a thick software manual prepped in his hands to launch. He seemed to think better of throwing it in my presence, at least for the moment.

"Why? You ready to come out of hiding?" I asked lazily.

"Yeah, I'm getting hungry," Vince said. I glanced at him noticing a he had a pink bakery box open next to him. He completely polished off the one in his fingers then reached in the box, coming up empty.

Leon laughed again, "I just bet."

"I need to make a stop before dinner," Vince mumbled.

"You better. You saw her when we left."

"Jesse, wrap it up. It's time for dinner," I called out. He waved his hand absently.

"You never said if she was better now," Leon reminded me.

"She made spinach and mushroom ravioli," I deflected.

This time Vince laughed, "Mia was making Dom's favorite. We're off the hook."

"Just hurry up," I told them before turning around to leave. I heard the book flying through the air, a loud smack, and the quick scrape of a chair.

"Dawg," Leon's voice held an edge of placation, "I was just playin'…" I smiled.

* * *

I sat with my cell in my hands Sunday morning at eight. I kept turning it over in my hands, hoping that the phone would ring and save me from having to make the call. I wonder why I hadn't considered that Letty would have taken the cell phone with her. Then again, I'd forgotten that she had the stupid thing anyway. I should have known, then again, since Mia was in charge of paying the bills…

The rustling from behind me broke my concentration. I felt a pair of hands slide up my back before reaching around to loosely hug my neck. The body pressed against me was warm, female, and nakedly willing but I wished she would either just go back to sleep or leave me alone. She started kissing and licking my ears in a seductive way but I bowed my head out of her reach. Not to be discouraged, the girl moved her lips to my back to kiss my shoulders. I stood up, tossing on my shirt and pants before fumbling around for my shoes.

"You're leaving?" She sounded shocked even though she was stating the obvious. I nodded and she slumped on the bed dejectedly. "Did I do something wrong?"

"No Camille," I responded while shoving my feet in my shoes. I checked for my wallet, stuck the cell in my pocket, and palmed my keys.

"But we didn't…You never…I mean, don't you want me?" she asked confused. I could understand the confusion. I'd driven her home after winning my race last night. I'd felt her up, prepped to take things with us to the next level, then I'd asked to postpone the main event till this morning. And now I was leaving before we began. But before I could answer with a truthful _'Not really'_ I decided that I wouldn't act like a complete jerk to spare myself possible hysterics.

"Yeah, but maybe some other time."

She seemed to mull this over for a minute before getting up to walk me to the door, still naked. I shook my head. "Can I still say we slept together anyway?"

"Sure," I told her before giving her a quick peck on the cheek and stepping into the morning sunshine.

Twenty minutes later I was standing in my own room, staring at my cell again. I paced the room for a moment then decided to suck up and call anyway. I wouldn't be able to focus until I at least attempted to talk to her for Mia's sake. As the phone rang I contemplated the stupidity of calling Letty this early on a weekend. It was just closing in on eight thirty now. She might be angry, then again she may not pick up at all. I could deal with either scenario but selfishly I wanted to hear her voice even if she wasn't happy to speak to me. I wasn't surprised that I got her answering machine, just disappointed. I flipped the phone closed to end the call then opened it again, dialing her number on the off chance she was up and trying to avoid my call. The ring back should spur her into action. When I didn't hear the answering machine go off or the phone ringing my heart started thumping irregularly.

"Letty?" she didn't respond so I tried again, "Letty, you there?"

"Ahhn," she grunted. She sounded like her face was muffled by a pillow. She sounded more than sleepy and it took a few seconds for me to figure out why she might sound like that.

"Are you drunk?" I asked curiously.

"Ah, no." Definitely a drunken response. Letty had been drinking last night. I laughed. She barely had more than two Corona's at a time around here.

"You're hung over."

"What do you want Dom?" Ah yes, there was her grumpy voice.

I stayed calm searching for something to say, "Nothin'. Actually the garage has been really busy lately if you needed something to do."

"Did Mia put you up to this?" her voice had gotten accusatory and less inebriated.

"Mia? What does my sister have to do with any of this?" I played confused. She didn't have to know Mia had laid into me yesterday.

"I won't be manipulated." Her voice continued to rise in anger and volume.

"I'm not trying to," I said quietly and then the bitterness of the last few months crept into my next statement, "I thought we were still friends. And right now I need people I can trust in my garage."

I wasn't surprised by her answer even though her voice was more controlled, "I can't."

"I figured you wouldn't," I guess I will have to take Mia's advice after all, "Letty I miss you. I want you to come back."

"I can't," she repeated. I braced myself, my mind repeating, _'Treat her like she's my girlfriend, not my best friend'_.

"Letty, I don't care how far you are, how long you stay away, if you hate my guts," I thought of Camille this morning, "I could date a hundred girls," I remembered what Letty had asked at the beach, "Hell, I don't care if _you_ date a hundred guys. You'll always have me," I thought of Sam and how jealous his friendship with Letty made me, "You've had me since you were sixteen. And right now you're the part of my family that's missing," I remembered how I felt in prison, "I can't function without all of my family Letty."

She didn't respond. I hoped that I still knew her well enough to believe that she may be crying. Normally she didn't make noise when she was crying but then my mind went back to the day I'd pushed her. "Letty? You still there?"

"Uh huh," she muttered, sounding stuffy. I felt bolstered by her response. She was crying. I hadn't completely screwed up.

"I don't care where you're at Letty. I'll come get you if you want," I impulsively offered, instinctively reaching for my keys.

And then I heard a man's voice close by, "What's wrong?"

My forehead furrowed and I felt heat haze over me, "Who's that?" Shit. Hadn't I just said I didn't care if she was with other guys? Guess that made me a liar.

Letty ended the call but not before exclaiming, "Oh fuck."

I stared at the phone. I didn't feel like I would be able to control myself right now if I called her back so I left it alone. After all, she'd hung up on me right? She should call me back. But inside I was going nuts. So Letty was sleeping with someone else. The rational part of me knew that we'd broken up nine months ago and that I had slept with tons of girls since then. I'd dated Joi Tran! But the irrational male part of me had maintained deep down that she hadn't been with anyone besides me. Or at least that had been the case until three months ago. Looks like her travels included at least one new experience that I could have lived without her having.

Stomping downstairs angrily I flung open the front door, not bothering to see if the force of the swing would snap it shut. My foot mashed the pedal to the floor, causing a large burn of rubber as I shifted to standstill to second, totally skipping first. It was the kind of rebellious move that might bother Jesse when I returned. His worry would be for the rx-7's transmission though. But if I was already going to hear him gripe about my driving then I would push my system to the limit.

God bless those Sunday morning drivers, diligently on their way to church or wherever their place of worship might be. I sped around them, not bothering to use my horn or care about trifles. I was clearly in the wrong for riding into lanes for opposing traffic. I barely slowed to go through turns. I even blatantly ran a few red lights. It wasn't until I finally had to apply the brakes or risk being run down by an approaching train that I had finally took a moment to breathe and think about the consequences of my rash actions. I could have been arrested and charged for about thirty infractions in the last ten minutes. In fact, I was very luck that the cops hadn't caught on to me. I'd covered a good bit of ground between my house and the train tracks.

I watched the train barreling past me and cursed because it was taking too long to pass. I was starting to return to rational thought. I didn't feel like being rational at the moment. I wanted to smash in the face of the buster moving in on my girl. I wanted to rage at her for leaving me behind, for being strong enough to leave me behind. I wanted the ringing in my ears to stop. Wait. That was my cell. I checked the number hoping I'd get a chance to take out my anger on her but it was only Vince. Well he would do for the moment.

"What!" I yelled.

"That's what I want to know. The front door is hangin' on one friggin' hinge and the glass is shattered."

"Why don't you fix it? I mean, that's what you're good at right?" I spat nastily. I was angry. Apparently the whole team thought Vince could fix everything. He'd stepped up when I was in prison. He'd run the garage and oversaw the shop. He'd looked out for Mia. He'd kept our family together when I'd fallen apart. He'd taught me a lesson when I lost my temper on Letty.

"Come home right now, I'll fix you," Vince growled low and menacingly. I was itching for a fight. Granted it wasn't the one I wanted to have but if Vince was willing then I'd take him up on the offer. Savagely I hung up. The rage had returned. I turned the car around then sped off to make the return trip home. I changed my route, just in case the cops had been called to investigate an aggressive driver in a red sports car. I still didn't slow for yellow lights, but I gave deference to red ones. I should have made an attempt to stop at the yellows too but I was still feeling reckless. I was forced to make a quick left at the corner to avoid a slow driver making right turn and then I passed by the statue of Confucius.

I heard the roar of an engine before I could completely escape Tran's turf. I'd been hoping that my luck would last but I pushed it further than I should have this morning. Well good. If he wanted to get into it today I would be happy to oblige him too. I stopped at the next red light, put the rx-7 in park and hopped out. Tran seemed shocked but he got out of his car too. The people in the row next to us wound up their windows and slunk down in their seats as if the light couldn't change fast enough for them.

"I thought I told you to stay outta my neighborhood Toretto."

"I'm sorry," I said aggressively stalking towards him. I couldn't be less sorry, "I didn't realize this street was in your turf too."

"Don't play dumb Toretto. Your buddy Vince does it better," he said casually standing his ground.

"I'll make sure to tell him you said so."

"You have a lot of balls coming here after what happened in the desert."

"Really? I remember coming off better than you did."

"There we had to play by their rules. Here," he smiled falsely motioning to the guy in the passenger seat of his car. The man was waving a semi-automatic gun at me, "the rules are less defined."

The light changed and the people in the other lane sped off quickly. Johnny was looking for me to back down and the part of me that didn't want to be riddled full of holes in the next few minutes begged to be sensible, walk away. But the angry part of me was raring to go, bullets be damned. Johnny stared at me, probably seeing the interplay of my thoughts on my face. He laughed in amusement, noticing that I had decided to break his neck anyway despite the threat of weapon fire. He waved his hand in a careless and dismissive manner.

"Go home Toretto. Clearly I'm not the biggest bully in your play park," he said ruefully before hopping back into his car. He rounded me and sped off, his passenger waving the gun again in salute. I took a calming breath then trudged angrily to my car to leave. I'd gotten about two lights down when I heard the roar of Tran's engine again. He was approaching me from behind. First I thought that he would ram into my car so I slammed on the gas, eager to give him a moving target. But Tran surprised me, driving over the yellow line to give his passenger a clear shot at me. Instinctively I ducked and I heard the ping of bullets as they hit the side of the car, the clink of glass as the driver and passenger windows of my car took on the spray, and the destruction of my windshield.

Crazily I slammed on the breaks, hoping that Tran would be surprised by my actions or at least have his man stop shooting. The gunfire did stop and the whine of his engine faded as it sped away. I was stunned but not enough that I wanted to be caught on the corner by the police when they showed up. I didn't even have a clue how I would explain the bullets. I opened the door to look at the horror struck faces of people frozen on the sidewalks, cautiously coming to their feet after the metallic rain had ended. Great. Witnesses.

I wanted to make a break for it but at that moment a black and white careened to a stop nearby. I stared at the flashing lights, feeling dizzy. I expected for a crazy moment that the police would draw their weapons and ask me to lie face down on the ground. At the moment I wanted to lie on the ground. I guess my spurt of adrenaline was coming to an end and I was going to crash at any moment. I saw one of the officers speak into the radio attached to his shoulder then begin cautiously approaching me. I heard the sirens coming and knew they were coming for me. Couldn't they tell that I was too stunned to fight?

"Sir? Sir? Are you alright? Have you been hit?" It took me longer than should have been necessary to process that he wasn't going to cuff me. He was trying to assess if I was hurt. I would be treated like a victim. Guess luck was on my side.

"They totaled my car man," I slurred. I stupidly turned to look back at my car. I could see more flashing lights surrounding the scene but the edges of my vision had been blurred.

"Victim appears to have a gunshot wound to the shoulder," I heard the cop behind me say as I sunk to the ground on my knees. Hearing him confirm that I had been hit by something made the fire in my shoulder sear. And that was the last I heard before I felt them catch me and lower me to the pavement.

* * *

Movies and television don't get it right. I woke in the hospital in searing pain. The room was dark, disorienting me. I recognized that I was too wacked out and my mouth was too dry to do more than drunkenly whisper for help. And for five agonizing minutes no help came. Annoyingly a monitor around me began to beep in earnest, waking a blurry figure that I assumed flipped on the light.

"Mom?" I whispered in horror. The figure patted my hand reassuringly. I just wanted her to help me. Another woman approached me, but she was blurry around the edges too.

"The pain meds seem to have run out," the unfamiliar voice said. Well no shit. I didn't want commentary, I wanted help. "On a scale of one to ten, how would you rate your pain Mr. Toretto?"

I was waiting for Papi to answer. And then things drifted out of focus then back into focus. Oh, she was talking to me. "Eight."

The unfamiliar voice tsked then marched from the room. Wait! If she was in charge of making the pain go away I wanted her to stay. But my Mom stayed and patted my hand.

"Mom? Mom, I hurt," I said hoarsely.

"I know Dom," she replied, she sounded strong and reassuring.

"And I'm thirst too," I threw out pitifully. But it was ok, my Mom was here and she wouldn't care how childishly I was acting. And I was glad I told her when she brought a bendy straw to my parched lips, allowing me to take two grateful sips. That was all I was allowed before she went back to patting my hand.

The unidentifiable woman came back, fiddled around for a second with something outside of my vision then gave a satisfied, "That should help ease the pain Mr. Toretto," before bustling back out of the room. I heard my Mom sigh and then I clutched at her fingers desperately. I just realized that my Mother, who had been dead long before my Papi couldn't be here with me right now.

"Stay with me Mom," I begged as sleep began to overtake me, "I need you to stay with me."

She used her free hand to rub my clutching fingers then bent to kiss me on the forehead. "I'm not going anywhere," she promised and then I gave up to unconsciousness.

The next time I woke the lights were on and I could focus on the people surrounding my room. I recognized Leon and Jesse sitting to my right by the window, their faces oriented to the TV centered at the foot of my bed. I wanted to test my voice but it didn't seem like I'd be able to muster more than a whisper. I briefly wondered where Mia and Vince were and then I felt my fingers tense around a slim feminine hand. I shifted my head to look down at Mia. She was sitting in a chair next to me, her head on a pillow that was propped on the side of my bed. The position she was in looked very uncomfortable. I took in her hair pulled back into a ponytail that hung oddly off her shoulders. My focus sharpened and I took in the hand rubbing circles on her unresponsive back. It took me less time to follow the arm up to see Vince's face. He was also watching TV although his hand was idly trying to comfort my sister.

I felt the urge to cough to clear my dry throat, noticing the three guys pulled their faces away from the TV to check mine. Jesse's smile was immediate, genuinely full of relief and joy. Vince's face shifted from inattentiveness to alert. His eyes shifted momentarily to Mia then back at me. He nodded his head in an acknowledging gesture. It was a testament to our friendship that I knew he was relieved to see me awake from that exchange.

"So was it a jealous husband or bad timing?" Leon asked, catching me off guard. His reaction may have seemed insensitive to people on the outside, but it was his way of showing how stressed he was. He always tried to smooth over stressful situations with humor. After my fight with Letty he'd calmed the house with his open ear and tongue-in-cheek comments that got the team loose enough to talk through their distress.

"Johnny Tran." There were nods of understanding from each of the guys. I coughed again and Mia stirred from her awkward sleeping position. She sat upright and looked into my eyes, relief etched there for everyone to see.

"Hi Mia," I said sheepishly. If I could have spared her anything it would have been the possibility of losing another member of her family. I would do anything to spare her the loss of me all over again in a much more permanent way. Mia didn't cry or fuss. Instead she reached for the bedside table, filled a cup, and placed a bendy straw to my lips. I gratefully took a few long drafts of the cool water. "Thanks."

"How's your shoulder? What's your pain rating?" She asked searching my face, ready for me to lie.

"My shoulder is uncomfortable but the pain is bearable," I told her truthfully. She looked at me piercingly for a minute before moving to stretch. I noticed that Vince's eyes lingered on her longer than what I felt necessary but I didn't have the strength to address my concerns at the moment.

"I'm going to see if I can get your doctor to visit," Mia told me as she patted my hand. I watched her walk out of the room then moved to interrogate the others.

"What time is it?"

"It's just after eleven Dom," Jesse supplied readily.

"How long have I been here?"

"Just overnight," Leon answered before adding as an afterthought, "It might have been safer to keep her."

I found the humor in his dark comment, "You might be right."

Mia walked in trailed by a nurse who started taking my vitals, changing my IV's, and throwing Leon flirty glances which he oddly ignored. I guess he was more stressed than he was letting on. As the nurse left, the doctor showed up.

After a glance at my chart she addressed me. "How are you feeling Mr. Toretto?"

"Like I've been shot at."

She smiled wanly, "From what I understand you were shot at. Fortunately the car took most of the abuse. You did however get a ricochet bullet imbedded in your shoulder."

"Oh is that all," I said working to make it sound like it was a small thing.

"Besides the small cuts from glass and a scar that will serve as a reminder, pretty much. The bullet didn't travel far but it made you bleed enough to scare the officers and medics on the scene."

I grinned, "Well then at least it wasn't a waste."

The doctor gave me a shrewd assessing look, "This young lady says that we should release you into her care. Originally I wanted to keep you for observation but I can see you are going to be a problem patient. I think it would be saner for everyone if you just go home and take it easy for a few weeks till that wound closes up. Keep it clean and come for stitch removal in two weeks ok?"

I nodded eagerly. I didn't need telling twice. I was getting a pardon with barely any effort involved. I could kiss Mia right now. The doctor shook her head. "I'll just go sign those release papers."

"Thank you doctor for being so understanding," Mia said graciously, patting my hand a little harder than she had done earlier. That was punishment I could live with. Discharge was handled quickly and I was eased into Vince's car with an appeal not to bleed all over his upholstery. He must be reassured that I'd live. He was getting back to his reliably surly self.

Two months later I finally got my car back. I'd answered the obligatory questions the cops had asked. For all intensive purposes I had participated in their investigation. I just left out the part about knowing who had shot at me. Johnny and I had some history and I didn't feel like having him do a retaliatory strike on my family for narcing on him. Besides, my history with law enforcement left me less inclined to want to point the finger at anyone. If they came by the right conclusion in their investigation it could be chalked up to good police work. However Tran was smart enough to dispose of the weapon and the witnesses had been too frightened to see much more than the pavement. The case ended up being closed due to lack of good leads.

The car had been written off as totaled by the insurance company. I got a puny little check from them which I had yet to cash. I wanted to make sure I had money for the repairs, if I could repair the seven. For a moment when it came in on the wrecker I felt a pang of melancholy for the poor thing. It was riddled in holes. There was a crazy load of water damage: the fire department had felt compelled to keep the thing from igniting. It looked like they had emptied the contents of a public swimming pool on the thing. Jesse's face mirrored the disbelief I felt deep down inside.

"Jeez Dom," was all he could get out before he walked away in shock. He didn't return until I'd gotten it moved to a corner of the garage and covered with a large white sheet. It looked like a corpse in the morgue. I found the analogy very appropriate. Jesse joined me, Leon, and Vince at our vigil at the now covered hood.

"Would it be appropriate for us to say some words or…"Leon trailed off. Vince hit him in the arm.

"I can't even deal with this right now," I said slowly. We each turned away to rejoin the projects currently on deck in the garage.


	11. Prodigal

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Fast and the Furious, it's characters or situations.**

**A/N: Thanks for all of the reviews! I'll shut up so Letty can return now.**

**

* * *

**

**Chapter 11: Prodigal**

Despite my personal problems business at the garage was booming. The teams' performance and Vince's win at Race Wars had brought in an influx of people wanting us to get under the hoods of their 'tuners. Business at _The Racer's Edge_was booming for Harry too. Vince had casually let slip that he got all of his performance parts from the store to an avid racer in our crowd. The gossip had spread like fire on gasoline. The next day Harry called to thank Vince for the honorable mention. He also asked me if he could suggest DT Automotive as a reliable place for the mechanically inept to get help with their cars. I had to laugh and say yes. Vince had commented that we were probably the new K.C., referring to the mechanic Harry had sent us to back in our early racing work kept Vince, Leon, Jesse, and I busy over the next seven months. Time blurred and before I knew it another year had passed.

"Are you ever going to fix the seven?" Harry asked me flat out.

"Why what's it to ya?" I countered pleasantly. Oddly talk of my car did not hurt as much I had expected. While I missed ripping up the streets in it for races, I'd been driving the Charger around for everything else. I still went to races, but the team took on a more active role in terms of racing. I had contemplated my retirement of sorts off and on for the last seven months. Sometimes this led to me pulling off the large white sheet I now had covering the seven to stare at it aimlessly before covering it back up. Other times I would consider junking it and starting fresh. But I was starting to get antsy. My considerations were starting to become more focused since Hector had joked that maybe I should start organizing races. No thank you. He could keep the headache he'd inherited from his cousin.

Harry pushed a manifest towards me to sign but held the pen out of reach, "It's already April. Race Wars is roughly two months out."

I gave him raised eyebrow and nodded towards the pen in his hand. He handed it over before I had to ask for it verbally. I signed and paid on the garage account to give myself time to formulate an answer.

"I'm retired," I tried out.

"You're too good. Come outta retirement."

"You're really pushy today."

"Well I got a stake in a Team Toretto win if you get my drift," he said waving his hand around to point out the new shelving units and upgrades. His profits had turned the store into an appealing display of automotive parts worthy of frequenting by racers and wannabees.

I refrained from rolling my eyes, "Vince pulled the overall victory."

"You weren't in top form then," Harry said quickly.

"I'm rusty."

"You're a natural talent," he told me hearing the beginning of a return from retirement in my voice. He pretended to plead to feed my ego, "Please Dom. I'm trying to get a new computer system installed and pay the eye candy."

I let the corners of my mouth turn up. I appreciated Harry's decision to hire some very attractive female help. It had made the trips to _The Racer's Edge_ worth the extra time. My team never waited for assistance but the assistants seemed to take an extra long time helping me and the guys do routine tasks. Flirting was a hassle but we suffered it somehow. Mia wasn't fooled that it was the hardship we were pretending it to be.

"Well I'll guess I need to get to work. I wouldn't want Celeste to be out of a job," I said loud enough for Celeste to wink at me and giggle from behind the counter.

"Thanks for thinking of me Dom," she trilled flirtatiously.

Harry came around the counter to give me a friendly slap on the back, "Just send the list of parts you need over. I'll order them on rush for you if I don't have the parts on hand."

Harry's pep talk banged around in my head as I returned home. It was still bouncing around in my mind when Mia called us to dinner twenty minutes later.

"So Jesse, what parts do you think I'll need to rebuild the seven?" I asked between bites of meatloaf. I couldn't wait to break out the grill tomorrow for a real Sunday barbeque. Winter was over and we were overdue.

"We're gonna rebuild the Mazda?" he exhaled excitedly. "Sweet!"

"Yeah, just in time for Race Wars."

"Guess Vince has a contender for his title," Leon ribbed.

"We need to make sure the frame isn't compromised," Jesse said absently.

"Yeah right," Vince snorted. Three quarters of his dinner were already gone. "Dom's rusty."

"We can retool it to hide your nitrous system," Jesse continued to fantasize, his eyes not seeing us anymore.

"Well rusty, are you planning let Vince's challenge go unanswered?" Leon instigated.

"Yeah, can we add a computer so you can view your mix," Jesse continued.

"No computers Jesse," I said pointing at him sternly to rein in his ideas. I pointed at Vince, "You're cocky for a guy who won by default."

He leaned back from his now clean plate, crossing his arms over his chest, "Not the swollen eye defense again."

Leon laughed, "You do anything lately to defile Tran's Cheerios rusty?"

"No but there's still time," Mia added flippantly. The whole table burst into laughter. I was glad we could laugh about my last two run-ins with Tran.

"Whatever," I tried to play like I was peeved but my lingering grin gave me away. "Let's get ready for races."

Sunday dawned bright and sunny. Perfect conditions for a barbeque. Mia was eager to have help on the cooking front. I diligently prepped the steaks with the Toretto family secret marinade before subjecting them to the fire. Mia put together the remainder of the feast: potato salad, coleslaw, and large pieces of Texas toast. Vince ran out for an hour and returned with beer and a bakery box. It felt like no time at all before the five of us were sitting at the wooden table outside trading jokes and shop talk. Leon had brought a radio outside so between the music and conversation it was easy for us to shut out the rest of the world.

About halfway through dinner Leon's cell rang. Mia shot him a look. She did not like cell phones at the table interrupting family time. He looked apologetically at the display before his mouth formed an 'o'. He stood up quickly and excused himself to take the call inside. Mia rolled her eyes. Two minutes later her eyes got wide as she focused on someone approaching from the corner of the house behind me. Vince and Jesse stood up and I whipped my head around to stare at who had captured their attention. Leon had returned tugging Letty along with him. My mouth was wide open. She had changed since I'd seen her last. Gone was the tomboy. This Letty had hair that was long and curly. She had on eye shadow and lipstick. She was tanner than I'd ever seen her here. She wore a sundress that fell to just above her knees but kept her shoulders bare. And she was wearing heeled sandals. The only odd thing was the set of dog tags she had around her neck. The look was completely unexpected. Hell, Letty was completely unexpected.

"Good, I stopped Vince's feeding frenzy so there may be something left for me to eat," she teased. Vince ran over to her and gathered her in a big bear hug.

"Look at you!" he exclaimed looking for a comment that would be good enough to encompass his feelings. He finally set her down and coughed gruffly, "You look good."

Her lips started to twitch but she hugged him again before moving to hug Jesse. He didn't say anything to her but there were tears in his eyes. She kissed him on the cheek and he blushed. Mia didn't wait for Letty to approach. She walked up to Letty and gave her a light shove.

"You call Leon?"

"You'd have squealed and ruined the surprise," Letty shrugged before gathering Mia into a long hug.

"You wait till I'm not around to get all wild on me," Mia giggled, waving at Letty's getup when they parted.

"Hypocrite," Letty said before they both grinned at each other sharing a secret with their eyes.

I coughed, unable to think of anything to say. I hadn't spoken to Letty since the day I'd been shot. Seven months was a long time. She crossed over to me but paused before giving me a hug. Her lips twitched again.

"Your Mom see you yet?"

"Nah. She would have squealed too. The whole neighborhood would know I was back."

"Is this temporary or permanent?" I left it vague. I was referring to whether she would stay in L.A. or not but she could easily think I was discussing her wardrobe.

"Not too sure."

"Your boyfriend going to lose his temper if he knows you're here?" The team looked between us. I ignored them. I was working to keep my temper in check but it didn't feel like it was going to flare up at the moment. I may be able to lie convincingly that I didn't care if she was still with that guy or a new one.

"Don't worry. His family isn't going to shoot me." Leon started laughing and came to hug Letty from behind.

"Well your mouth hasn't changed at least," he said, before marching her over to the chair across from him. We resumed our seats, scrounged up another plate, and started to eat again.

"So where were you?" Jesse asked.

"Virginia Beach visiting my brother Danny."

She'd been clear across the country! I recalled that I had offered to come get her. The tiny smirk around her mouth told me that she remembered my offer too.

"What you been up to?" Jesse continued.

"Workin', tannin', chillin'," she listed lazily.

"Shoppin'," Mia added slyly. Letty rolled her eyes.

Vince tugged her hair, "I bet you did more than that."

"Yeah Letty you seemed to have really gotten off in Virginia Beach." I hadn't meant to let the comment slip out but it had. Silence fell over the table as the rest of the team stared at us again.

She smiled calmly, "Why don't you just ask me outright instead of pussyfooting around the subject."

Jesse broke in, "I thought you two were friends."

"We are. Friends share that info all the time," I tried to keep my voice steady and conversational.

"But unfortunately I have to go explain my disappearance to my parents, sorry." She didn't sound sorry. Instead she shrugged and stood up. But as she passed she bent over to whisper in my ear, "You want to ask me outright?"

"Welcome home Letty," I said. She laughed all the way around the corner. Mia threw me a look that was exasperated and confused. The guys just looked like they were happy to have escaped being drawn into our battle of wills.

"You never ask me about my screwing around," Vince growled.

"Aww pumpkin, feeling left out?" Leon taunted.

* * *

The following Saturday night I found myself leaning against the Charger with Vince casually scoping out the parade of barely clothed ladies. It was normal for them to prance past me and the team but tonight they were making at least a half dozen passes. And there wasn't one approach.

Vince sniffed, "I think something off tonight brother."

I nodded my head in agreement. Maybe they could tell that I preoccupied. I hadn't seen Letty since her return. We kept missing each other: at the shop, at the café, at the house. But everyone else was hanging out with her hours on end, at least according to their stories. I was still trying to figure out where I had been when all of these long exchanges had been taking place.

Edwin approached us and I mentally rolled my eyes. Lately he'd been talking a lot of smack, claiming that I had lost my edge. He was working to become a contender in our crowd. I noticed that he was losing less often than he used to so the cockiness was to be expected. Still I disliked that he was trying to use my withdrawal from racing to do it. We shook hands then he started asking casually about who I thought was competition. Vince and I played into the conversation, not really giving much away. We firmly maintained that we were still the team to beat here though. I was happy to see Jesse approach us quickly.

"Um Dom, when do you think Hector will plan the main event?" he asked bouncing from foot to foot. He was really asking if he thought he might be racing tonight.

"He's been real slow on the uptake tonight," Edwin added.

"And I can think of one big reason why," Mia said. I whipped my head around. I hadn't noticed her approach from behind me. My eyebrow rose slightly and she shrugged in that maddeningly female way. I was saved the bother of breaking down to ask her. I heard the familiar purr of the 240sx before it came to a complete halt four cars away from us. The crowd whipped around to stare at the car which hadn't been seen here in over a year. Some of the parade participants had the guts to stare in my direction to gauge my reaction.

"I heard a rumor that my girl Letty was in town…"Edwin started before licking his lips and rubbing his hands together. I hoped his reaction was involuntary. At least that was the lie I would tell myself to keep from knocking him to the ground. Sam sauntered over to the driver side door and leaned over to talk to her before grabbing the door handle. He held out a hand which she surprising took before getting out of the car. Sam shut the door for her before gathering her in a bone crushing hug and laughing. When they pulled apart Letty was smiling.

I had to wait until she walked around to the front of her car to see her properly. The image would forever be burned into my retinas. I felt myself getting turned on by the outfit even as I wanted to rip every male eye out in the immediate area. She was wearing a white mini skirt. She never wore skirts to races. It was longer than the skirts of most of the girls out here but left her extremely tanned legs exposed to the avid gazers. She had on some purple heels that tied up her slightly past her ankles but finished in bow on the backs. Her hair was pulled up off her neck, twisted to form a mini waterfall of curls. And while her front was covered more modestly by the purple top in the front she turned to a voice hailing her and I saw her completely exposed back.

The dog tags were also in place I noticed as the clinked against the chain around Hector's neck during their brief hug. I shouldn't have heard the chink of the metals from my position at the Charger but then I realized in Hector's funny look that I had approached them. And I must have looked like I was going to commit a homicide because he backed away to a respectable distance. The heels had given Letty some height but she was still over a foot shorter that I was. She looked at me over her shoulder, a wide innocent smile on her face. My eyes narrowed and she smiled wider. Hector coughed and focus turned to him.

"It's about time you showed up chica. Now we can get started," he called out loud enough for the crowd to hear. The crowd focused on his words even though they kept stealing glances at me and Letty. And I understood why. I was standing so close to her I could have rubbed my now folded elbow across her bare back. We were both looking at Hector, or at least I was pretending to give him all of my attention. But it was clear that there was a dramatic interplay occurring between the two of us.

"So who's racing tonight?" Letty asked casually, her head tilting slightly to the side. She her body adjusted to the slight alteration, leaning slightly towards me to expose her neck. I stiffened slightly to keep from reaching out to her. I wasn't sure if I would force her to get back in her car or rip her clothes off so I kept my distance.

"You want in?" Hector asked, his race persona now completely on.

"I don't know. I might be a little rusty," she replied. Her race persona was on now too but it held new facets. She was still cool and nonchalant but now she was adding a hint of edgy sexiness. Gone was the innocent sexiness she'd had before she left. This was a woman standing in front of me. Not my friend. Not the girl I used to date.

"Well I'm willing to help you check if you're still running good under your hood," Edwin said eagerly. I felt my muscles flex slightly in my arms.

"Oh I definitely want a piece of this," taunted some guy with brown hair who stepped out of the crowd. The crowd tittered, some guys making lewd comments that I forced myself not to respond to._ 'Let them keep their eyes Dom. Don't rip out their eyes Dom.'_ I told myself to keep my stance firm and unyielding. It was just talk. Just harmless, albeit annoying, chatter.

"Well you got two. But we need one more," Hector said.

"I'm willing to take a ride," called out Ian, I kid I vaguely remembered from high school. The crowd 'oohed' and a couple people laughed.

"This ride will be two large," Letty said grinning magically producing a folded cache of money. She tossed her money to Hector which he caught with a goofy grin on his face. Edwin sauntered over to him, handing him the money while staring at Letty. _'Well maybe his eyes'_ I allowed myself. Ian and the brown haired kid gave their money to Hector who took a second from the excitement to look me in the eyes. He used his eyes to ask the question, _'Is this lineup ok for you?'_ I gave my head a short nod. I must have made Christmas come early for him.

"Alright then, let's race!" he yelled. There were cheers from the crowd and people disbursed to their cars to travel to the line. Letty turned and walked to her car and I followed automatically, shielding the view of her back from as many guys as possible. She stood near the door to the 240sx and I automatically reached past her to open the door. Letty took her time sauntering into the driver's seat, as if my gesture was commonplace. I gave the door a push to close it then turned as if I didn't have a care in the world, returning to the Charger so I could follow the racers to the line.

"That was a wicked race," Hector said to me half an hour later. We were standing around outside _El Gato Negro_, a lunch counter by day turned bar at night that he'd begun to treat as his after race hot spot. While the place had a small dance floor inside, the real action was outside where our cars were parked. This was where people preened and showed off their rides. It was almost like a tiny car show more than anything else. Well normally it was a tiny car show. Tonight it felt like the whole race crowd had turned out.

"Letty definitely took 'em to school," Carmen added, a wicked gleam in her eye. Mia had given me the same look when Letty had crossed the line first. Woman kind was celebrating a small victory tonight in our racing universe.

"I can't wait till you roll back up to the line," Hector continued.

"I bet," I responded gruffly before I let my eyes do a sweep across the crowd of people milling around. The parade of women had started up again. And again, they weren't approaching. The behavior was out of character given my checkered history since my break up with Joi. I didn't miss it though. I only wanted one woman's attention and she was missing at the moment. We exchanged pleasantries for another five minutes before Hector and Carmen left to cycle around, a wry smile twisting Hector's lips. I guess I wasn't being very covert about my attention being elsewhere.

I drained the last of my beer before making my way inside to order another. I glanced at the dance floor idly wondering where the rest of the team had disappeared to when I spotted Letty making her way towards the bar. She tapped the guy next to me on the shoulder. He turned and made no attempt to hide his perusal of her body.

"Oh hell yeah," he said. Then he must have noticed the slight shifting of my body next to him. I saw his jaw slacken as he took in the blank mask of my face and my piercing gaze. He cleared his throat, mumbling, "never mind," before he took off. Letty's eyes crinkled even though she didn't crack a smile. I raised an eyebrow inviting her to comment but she declined.

"Here you are," the bartender yelled, sliding the beer to me. She then turned to Letty, "What can I get you?"

"Two shots of Patrón," Letty ordered. I slid the girl a twenty to cover the beer and the shots.

"Hard liquor?" I questioned conversationally.

"I could use something stiff," she retorted. I felt myself getting aroused at the double entendre. The shots came and she pushed one of them towards me. I exchanged the beer bottle for the tiny glass and we clinked them together before throwing them back. I felt the sting of the tequila and instinctively reached for the beer to chase it. After swallowing a swig I tilted the bottle to her. She shook her head no. The waitress returned and Letty ordered two more shots. I paid again.

"After this you're buying," I said dryly. She chuckled.

"I could have bought this one."

"The first round was welcome home. The second," I said pointing to the two small glasses that had been pushed our way, "is congrats for the win. You did good tonight."

She gave me a small nod as we clinked glasses again then downed our shots. I paused for fifteen seconds before taking a drink from my beer. I didn't want it to be construed as a chaser since Letty had yet to chase her shots. She made to call the waitress back but I lightly tapped her shoulder with the bottle. She gave me a questioning look.

"What's the rush?" I asked.

"No rush. Just being sociable. You look thirsty," she responded.

I watched her lean over the bar to order four more shots. Her back arched and I sucked in a ragged breath. The waitress' eyes widened in curiosity for a second at the request. The she shrugged and brought us two more glasses. She quickly filled all four. Letty paid before suggesting we each take another shot. Clink. Then down into the stockpile already in my stomach. I saw her reach for the next shot but this time I leaned down to whisper in her ear.

"Pace yourself. We have all night."

She moved in closer to whisper back, "I expect you to honor that." I could feel the heat emanating from her skin. She was so close. My hormones wanted to have a meltdown right here in the crowed club. The shots had helped to loosen up a portion of the hold I had on them. I watched her slowly lick her lips and I gave her a cocky grin.

"Letty girl we thought you left," Leon yelled, joining us at the bar. This is the part where I should have stepped back. I should have widened the gap between Letty and I to include Leon in our small circle. But I didn't back away. So when she turned slightly to talk to him her side was braced against my front.

"Nah. You want a shot?" she offered, her hand held out expectantly towards me. I passed her the little glass. Leon gave the label a look then shook his head.

"You really came back a big girl Letty," he said. His voice held some wonder. I watched his eyes reassess her. "You ready for round two?"

"Just a second," she replied before brushing against me to raise her final glass but I didn't oblige. She downed hers then raised her eyebrow at me. I shoved my still full glass gently towards her. Grinning she downed mine too then took Leon's hand to rejoin the crowd on the dance floor. Five shots in less than five minutes. She was well on her way to being exceedingly drunk.

Giving up on the warm beer I decided to return outside to see if I could find Vince, Mia, or Jesse to pass along the message that I wanted to leave early. I spotted Vince standing by his Maxima with a curvy bottle blond, his hands wrapped around her waist. He was whispering in her ear and she was grinning. Guess someone was getting lucky tonight.

"You ready?" Vince asked spotting me. I nodded. He gave the blond a squeeze, whispered something in her ear, then stalked away to round up the rest of the team. I went to rest against the Charger again while I waited. Ten minutes went by before Jesse slunk out, his hands in his pockets but his eyes bright. He gave me a head nod which I returned but didn't say anything to me. Mia came out next, quickly followed by Vince. Mia's expression was amused. Vince's looked strange. It was like he couldn't decide whether he should take care of what was bothering him alone or ask me for my help. It was a look used right before he asked me to help him bring his mom home from the bars.

"Where are Leon and Letty?" I called out. Vince shrugged. He grabbed the blond's hand, shuffling to get in his car. Jesse and Mia started walking towards Jesse's car but I had my eyes trained on the door. I was going to give them two minutes before I walked in there myself. Fortunately they chose that moment to burst through the doors. Leon and Letty had their arms slung around each other's waists, their faces inches away from one another as she turned to tell him something in his ear. He grinned, shaking his head no. They continued to approach his Skyline but neither noticed I was watching.

Leon let go of Letty when they got to the passenger side of his car. Due to the quirks of the car, that meant they were on the side that I couldn't see. She leaned over saying something low in his ear and he grinned again. My eyes narrowed as he gathered her up by his side then opened the passenger side door. He gently pushed Letty towards the opening but she swung around to face him. I couldn't see her face but I saw Leon's amused expression change to shock. Letty's laughter rang across the lot. Heads turned in curiosity. I balled my fists. Leon leaned in, bracketing Letty between his hands now touching the roof. They stared at each other for a long moment, a contest of wills being played out.

I wanted to stop watching. I knew that Leon, one of my closest friends, would not mack on Letty. Yet I couldn't stop staring at them, watching the conversation get more intimate even as it seemed to get more animated. When Leon dipped in closer to bend his ear closer to her lips I started taking steps forward. The invisible tether was back in action.

"Oh is that all," I heard Leon say dryly.

"Yep," she replied.

"And you'll…" he started but she cut him off.

"Yep."

"This is against my better judgment," he said, handing over the keys to her car and pushing away. I watched her walk away then turned to face Leon.

"You and me are going to talk," I said with my arms folded. I wanted to fight him now but I would wait till we got home. I stomped to the Charger, violently ripping the door open then slamming it shut. The ride home gave me enough time to fester. I couldn't believe those two would think I would just watch them hook up. He was my family. And she, well she was…Mine.

I meant to pull up to my house but I found myself blocking the Ortiz's driveway. Letty waited for me by her car, her body stance patient. I approached aggressively but stopped an arm's length away.

"Something on your mind?" she asked. What was on my mind? I wanted to know about the guy in Virginia. I wanted to tear into her about whatever was going on with Leon. I wanted to figure out how she put away all those shots and didn't seem like she was going to fall down.

"You never used to wear skirts."

"It's a bad habit." I felt myself lose some of the aggressiveness. I really didn't want to fight with her. Not tonight anyway. I really wanted something else.

"That habit includes heels?"

She laughed lightly, "Yeah."

"Do these changes mean you won't work at the garage?" I asked impulsively. I wanted her back in my space. I wanted to know that I would have at least scheduled time to be around her since I could barely catch her any other time. She frowned.

"Is that what you really want?"

"Yes," I lied. I wanted more but we were playing it cool and friendly.

"Am I back on the team?" she asked softly. I wasn't expecting the vulnerability. I stepped forward and so did she.

"You will always be a part of this team."

"Good, 'cause I want to race at Race Wars," she stated suddenly business like. I grinned and reached for her, trapping her in a bear hug.

"Welcome home Letty." She snuggled into my chest. The two of us stood there for a moment. When we pulled apart I knew that all the crap was behind us. Anything that we had done to hurt one another in the past two years was out the window, leaving us free to start fresh. It left me hopeful. I pulled away, turning to march back to the Charger. I would push my luck tonight no matter how much I wanted to.

"Hey yo Dom," she called out. I paused to look at her. She looked around to check that we were still alone. "You wouldn't happen to have a spare bedroom at your place would ya?"


	12. Assumptions

**Disclaimer: Don't own Fast and Furious. Don't sue.**

* * *

**Chapter 12: Assumptions**

"What the fuck did you do to that chick?" I looked over to give Letty a dirty look. She grinned at me giving me a wink. "Ah, you put it on her."

It was Letty's first day back in the garage. The seven sat in pieces. Most of the damage had been surface. In other words: bullet holes and water. Looking at the remaining skeleton today with Letty cracking jokes just made me want to scrap it altogether.

"Don't you have some work to do?" I asked sternly. She flashed me a grin before sauntering off to do a rotor replacement. I stared at her, probably longer than necessary. I was going to pretend that I was just unused to seeing her in the garage. My accelerated heartbeat was trying to make a liar out of me.

"Here's that list of parts Dom," Jesse announced, emerging from the office with a laundry list of items. I'd warned him that he'd need to clear the parts with me first. I was really just afraid that I'd end up with a fantastic over budget experiment that Mia would gripe about.

"This looks good. Order it," I told him. Jesse looked satisfied as he walked away. Ok. No more stalling. I shook out my arms, gave my neck a satisfying crack then dove into removing the engine. I spent the rest of the day working on my car, leaving the normal shop work to Vince, Leon, Letty, and Jesse. We closed up then returned to the house for dinner. Mia was already waiting for us with Letty's favorite foods ready: meduros, pink beans and rice, pork chops, and these little fried plantain chips that reminded me of French fries.

"Thanks," Letty said appreciatively.

"Oh it's no problem," Mia replied. The look they gave each other was full of significance. They were up to something.

"So what are you doing tonight?" I asked Mia.

"Shopping. I need a new bathing suit and 'tis the season…" she trailed off. Leon reached for the pork chops first. Everyone bowed their heads.

"God bless the bikini and the hot women that wear them," Leon said gleefully. The rest of us murmured Amen. Mia threw him a salty look.

"And what are you getting into?" I asked looking directly at Letty as the food was passed around. I was hoping she would answer. Despite asking to move back in, Letty was still sleeping at her parent's house. She and I were being friendly to one another. We were revolving in the same circle but not making any moves to make our relationship anything else. It felt like our friendship in high school really. Almost. Except for the fact that she had my attention all the time. And I didn't want her to sleep at the Ortiz's house. I wanted her here.

"A new bathing suit according to Mia," she responded in her friendly tone. I was starting to really hate friendly. I wanted more than friendly but I didn't have a right to ask for it so I kept my mouth shut.

"Well I want to go," Leon piped up eagerly. Vince looked up at him, pausing in shoveling dinner into his mouth. "Hey, they could use a male opinion on their suits."

Letty's lips gave a small twitch. I felt my brows draw together. _'Leon's my friend. He's not trying to mack on Letty…Don't rip his eyes out.'_ Vince didn't seem totally convinced in Leon's answer but he returned to eating at full speed.

"Are you going suit shopping too Jesse?" I asked keeping my voice calm. I wanted more of a lookout than just my sister. Mia loved me but she wouldn't stand in the way of Letty and Leon if they wanted to get together. She'd made herself very clear that I had screwed up on my own so I would have to fix things on my own.

"Oh no Dominic. I want to work on some designs for our cars," he said between bites of his dinner. I could tell he was eager to get to work as soon as possible. I would have to suck it up and go myself.

"Well I could use a new suit too," I threw out.

"Oh no! No way Dom!" Mia exclaimed. "Shopping with you is asking for misery."

"Mia, name a time we've shopped together and it's been bad," I challenged.

She stared at me incredulously, "I was eight, you were ten. You opened the door to the fitting room and exposed me to a line of people."

"That was over a decade ago."

"I was twelve, you were fourteen. You humiliated me by announcing in Victoria's Secret that I didn't have enough breasts to fill the smallest sports bra they carried."

"Nine years ago! And I didn't say it that loud."

"One lady peeked out of her fitting room to look at me."

"Give me a break…" I started but she cut across me.

"I was fifteen, you were seventeen. You and Vince got bored, wouldn't let me try on any more clothes and just told me to buy everything to try at home. You know the one store wouldn't let me return anything. I had a two hundred dollar store credit which Papa made me work off at the garage."

I threw up my hands. The rest of the team was in a fit of laughter. "Forget it then. Go. Have fun," I told them. Mia crossed over to me, placing a kiss on my head.

"I knew you'd see it my way."

Mia, Letty, and Leon peeled off in Mia's car ten minutes later, promising to keep on the lookout for a suit for me. Jesse retreated to his room to work on his project of the moment, designing decals for our cars. I think this was his way of including Mia again for Race Wars. He was putting a lot of thought into them, making sure they would all have a centralized theme that would make us recognizable as a team. But he also wanted each to have its own personality. I really should have him make a logo for the garage that we could add inconspicuously just in case people had any doubt who's team the cars belonged to.

Vince left not long after the others to take care of 'stuff'. That left me with nothing but television and my thoughts. I tried watching TV for a half hour before I went upstairs. Might as well get some extra sleep. I would just go to the garage early in the morning. I lay in bed trying to force myself to go to sleep. But every time I started to settle down my mind flashed me thoughts of Letty. I had thought about her a lot while she was away. Even when I was with all those other girls, I had always returned to thoughts of Letty.

As time slipped by it bothered me that she had been able to actually move on. It was crappy, I know, but I'd been reassured before she left LA. She hadn't made moves to date anyone else. But I really didn't know anything about her year away. And she hadn't made any attempts to share that information with anyone, least of all me. The woman that had returned was mysterious and exciting to me. For the first time since we'd gotten together I had to wonder if I could be enough for her. Her childhood infatuation wouldn't be able to assure me that she would always be with me. She had proven that she could walk away, regardless of how much she loved me. That's why the thought of _any_ guy around her, touching her, sharing the same air as her irked my nerves. I couldn't guarantee that Letty wouldn't take up with someone else now that she was back.

Rationally my mind knew I could trust Leon to respect my prior claim. It was my emotional, irrational side that wanted to break his hands in the following weeks leading up to Race Wars though. He and Letty were spending a lot of time together in the garage. I would catch them huddled over the seven's engine having hurried conversations that would stop when anyone else approached them. Some nights he would disappear after she left, staying out for hours with no explanation. I wouldn't have suspected anything except they both looked extremely tired in the mornings. I quit feeling reassured when Mia would join them on their excursions. I would often get one of my favorite meals following those adventures. Mia was feeling guilty about something but vehemently denied that she was keeping any secrets.

Letty wasn't helping matters. She was sending me into overdrive at work and redlining me everywhere else. She came to the garage in jeans that hugged her hips. Her tanks hugged her curves and showed flashes of her stomach. She didn't seem concerned when it was hot, the sweat beading on her exposed flesh, making the shirts stick to her. She adjusted by taking twice as many water breaks. I was becoming so conditioned I could hear the small snick of the top of the bottle. She'd unplug it with her teeth, tilt her head back, and take a satisfying drink. I found myself pausing every time to watch because she always used her teeth to close the top then lick her lips to catch any stray beads of water.

What I had assumed to be a fluke at races turned out to be a new fashion statement for Letty. She started showing up in leather skirts. She did replace the strappy thin heels for wedge looking ones. They still gave her some height and drew attention to her legs but they were flat on the bottom. This had become a necessity after Mia had cried over a pair of heels Letty had snapped during a race. And she brushed my strange behavior off, never commenting on the fact that I basically became hyperaware of her whereabouts. I was never far from her at races even though I never touched her.

Six weeks later I was reduced to feeling like an out of control horny teen. I obsessed about Letty all the time now. As long as I continued to repress the most tortuous behavior she was exhibiting I was able to keep my feelings under wraps. At least until she would do it. She started by letting her fingers linger when she passed me a wrench. The next time she placed her hand on my back as the team stood around the computer to view Jesse's logo sketches. In the kitchen her shoulder rubbed my arm as she passed me an extra dish to put in the sink. If I thought about her touch it made me think about returning the favor. And I knew where touching her would lead me. I'd feel the heat flood through me, my memory returning me to one of a truck load of memories of us having sex. I both wanted her to touch me and perversely wanted her to stop it. But I was determined to keep things friendly until she showed interest in being with me. Or at least that's what I told myself up until I decided to break Leon's neck.

It was the Sunday before Race Wars. The previous night I had scraped a win in the seven. But the timing just felt off. I didn't feel like I had the room to do my adjustments at the house so I drove to the garage to work. I'd just come back, eager to fire up the grill. I was back in one of my perverse moods. I wanted to be done with the grilling by the time Letty showed up so I could focus completely on watching her. Pulling into the driveway I decided that I should go ahead and fire up the grill so the coals would be hot when I returned with the meat. I heard Jesse and Leon's laughter as I rounded the corner of the house to the backyard. I was prepared for their shenanigans but what I saw made my jaw clench.

Jesse, Mia, Letty and Leon were lying in a row on a blanket in the grass. The first three were lying on their backs, clearly sunbathing. Mia and Letty wearing bikini's I would never want them to wear outside the safety of the back yard. I glanced at Letty's legs and practically felt my heart jump start. I noticed Leon was lying on his stomach, leaning over Letty to whisper something to both of the girls. I think I could have forgiven that except Letty smacked his arm and he did something stupid. Leon put his hands on her stomach and started to tickle her. Letty started laughing and the invisible tugging line drew me up to them.

"Ah, ah, ah, uh…Dominic," Jesse stammered, struggling to get to his feet. Mia noticed me, must have seen the manic glint in my eyes. She was too slow to react though. I pushed Leon and he landed on his back, his arms raised to cover his face.

"Jesus Dom, what is your problem?" Letty yelled at me. I froze, my fist raised to strike my friend. I blinked my eyes and looked at her. She'd sat up, her chest was heaving. I started to feel a conflict between my anger with Leon and my attraction for her.

"What the fuck you got on?" I said roughly. She looked at me like I was crazy. Then a small smile twisted her lips. She stood up and I mimicked her movement.

"If I had known you'd be jealous that we didn't get you a suit, we would have given it to you sooner," she said casually, folding her arms over her chest. I was taken aback by the comment.

"Yeah Dom, we got you a suit too," Leon said from his position on the ground. He seemed to think that was the safest place for him at the moment. I gave him a sobering stare. Letty turned to walk into the house and I followed. She led me up the stairs, pausing in Mia's room to riffle through the closet. I watched her body sway as she searched. The invisible tether was back in play.

"Dom," Letty whispered. My hands were rubbing her behind. I was breathing on her neck. I forgot that I was supposed to keep my hands to myself. I couldn't recall why though.

"Hmmm," I murmured. My right hand slid up her back, untying the strings on her top while my left snaked between her legs. She groaned and I shuddered. I wanted her so badly. I pressed her back into my front. She definitely could feel how much I wanted her. Letty squirmed against me, enhancing the pressure building in me. I gripped her hips momentarily looking to stop her but she twisted in my arms. I got a quick glance at her bared front before she was kissing me wildly.

"Stop," she moaned into my mouth. I held her loosely, pausing to look in her eyes. She was as turned on as I was. I felt her shove material into my chest. Looking down I noticed a pair of red and black swim trunks.

"Letty, I don't care about the swim gear," I growled softly. She licked her lips.

"I can tell," she replied, rubbing up against me. I gripped her hips again. I started to kiss her but she pulled back to assess me. "So are you going to beat up every guy that touches me?"

"It crossed my mind." She tilted her head to the side. I took advantage, nipping her neck.

"Uh huh," she said, bending to retrieve her top. She started to tie it back on.

"What are you doing?"

"Going to tan. You can join us if you want," she offered. Her friendly voice was back in place. What just happened? I was grasping for something to say to make her stay with me, to get her to start touching me again. She practically flew downstairs. _'Girlfriend, not one of the boys.'_ The thought popped into my head in time for me to stop her as she crossed the kitchen to return outside.

"Letty," I called out. She looked at me, her face flushed and curious. "Let's go out Wednesday night." Her eyebrows shot up, her eyes wide.

"You mean like a date?"

"Yeah, like a date." She laughed, walking out to rejoin the group still lying in the sun. They'd switched up their lineup, Leon now sandwiched between Jesse and Mia, a space open for Letty on Mia's other side. Well it wasn't a 'no'. Bolstered I fired up the grill.

By Wednesday morning I was feeling tense. Letty still hadn't given me an answer. The garage was keeping us busy. We were trying to clear out the last of the pending jobs by tomorrow since the shop would be closed for the weekend. I finished replacing the shocks on a Camaro to find Leon sauntering into the supply area.

"Yo Le can you bring me…" Letty called out.

"No. Come get it yourself," he called back. She rolled out the kinks in her neck then joined him. My eyes narrowed. I quietly followed, stopping to listen in on their conversation.

"Well I can't tonight. I have plans," Letty told him. I heard him grunt.

"You promised me," he said, uncharacteristically stern.

"I've kept my promises," she sharply replied.

"You've half assed, yeah."

"Whatever Le."

"No one's feelings around here are secret baby girl. So stop wasting time." I walked away preferring not to be caught snooping. So she and Leon did have something going on. The speculation had hurt less than knowing the truth. Methodically I started putting the tools away to give myself something to do. The rest of the cars were being finished up by the rest of the team. I needed to make calls to the owners for pick up but I couldn't bring myself to do it just yet. My throat seemed closed up.

Letty walked over to place her tools back in the box. I gave her a blank look but she didn't seem to notice. She was making a production of putting each tool back in its place.

"So are we still on for tonight?" she asked quietly. Leon looked over at us to give me a small smile, before he returned to his work. I think I hated him. Well if she was going to choose him over me then I wanted her to tell me to my face.

"Yep," I said louder than necessary so he would hear. "I'll pick you up at eight."

Dinner alone with Letty turned out to be a lot easier than I expected. We talked a lot about Han. She was regaling me with stories of life while I was at Lompoc. I reciprocated with stories of life while she was in Virginia. We laughed a lot. I was able to push the brush off to the back of my mind. And for a while I was able to forget. I brushed my fingers over her hand at the table. I placed my hand on her lower back to guide her back to the car. I allowed myself to rub her bare knee at stop lights. I got distracted, pulling into the driveway at my house.

"I'm going to walk you home," I said to cover my mistake. I took her hand to lead her down the street but she stopped walking.

"Dom, I need to tell you something." My mouth went dry. We had just had such a good time. I wasn't ready to watch her be with someone else.

"Can it wait till after Race Wars?" She gave me a funky look. Her mouth opened then closed. Just then I heard the sound of a quasi-familiar engine round the corner. Seconds later, Mia came to a halt at the curb. She and Leon jumped out of the car. Mia looked like she had hoped to beat me home.

"Hey. How was dinner?" Mia asked curiously.

"Are you serious?" Letty asked me ignoring Mia's question. Mia and Leon sensed that they'd walked in on a private moment. Leon looked at both of our faces then frowned at Letty. Mia started to edge away towards the door.

"Dinner was fine Mia," I answered. Letty pulled off her heels, chucking them at Leon. He laughed and she threw up her hands. We watched her stomp off down the street muttering under her breath.

Leon turned to me, a grin still on his face, "Dom I'm starting to wonder whether the stories about you being a Don Juan are true."

* * *

After the previous year, I expected Race Wars to be fun but uneventful. Friday I made the team promise me that they would avoid Tran and his crew if at all possible then watched them scatter. Saturday the action swelled around the race area, cars lined up in twos to challenge one another. Given the way we were spaced out in the line I missed watching Vince and Leon race. I won my race and had enough time to catch Jesse and Letty race. Good everyone made it through the first round. I started counting heads but someone was missing.

"Where's Mia?" I asked. Jesse shrugged but Vince stared past me. I turned to see Mia's Acura pull up to the line. I was going to strangle her. Didn't I tell her that she couldn't race! Her car wasn't even ready yet. I'd never allowed the car to be modded beyond the paint. The official threw down his hands and Mia jumped off the line, coming to a satisfying win ten seconds later. By the time Mia found us, the announcer had warned that the second round was starting in ten minutes. But I was so furious I couldn't revel in the fact that the whole team, including my sister, had all won their first races.

"That was awesome chica," Letty told her, pulling Mia into a hug. Mia was smiling like an adrenaline junkie.

"Thanks Letty."

"Yeah girl, that was a good run," Leon added. Mia hugged him next.

"How did you get so fast Mia?" Jesse asked.

"Would you believe natural talent?"

"Try again," Vince growled. He looked as angry as I was. Mia frowned.

Letty laid a hand against his forearm, "Cool it V. She did great out there."

"She risked her neck out there," he countered.

"The same as the rest of us," Letty said heatedly, pointing to encompass the rest of the team. And then it clicked. Letty, Leon, and Mia had been missing these last few weeks together. No matter what groupings had left the house they had been meeting up to work on Mia's car. Mia's guilt had manifested from the knowledge that they were doing something I disapproved of. Something I'd expressly forbidden. What else was being done behind my back? I felt my temper starting to boil over.

"Can't we just race?" Jesse asked nervously.

I nodded. "Yeah, but we will discuss this later."

It took me through my third race to calm down. I didn't bother looking for anyone for the rest of the afternoon though. When racing was complete for the day, I stood as I had last year, five races away from winning the top prize. Vince and Letty had made it too. Leon, Jesse, and Mia had each been eliminated throughout today's competition. I got a lot of offers to come grab a beer. I also got offers to test drive several of the girls milling around. But I declined in favor ripping Mia, Letty, and Leon apart for their little stunt. I expected my return to the camp to be one that instilled fear. Instead everyone was gone. I kicked the side of the camper, ignoring the throb in my toes. That had been stupid.

"Oops, guess I'm in the wrong place," I heard an unfamiliar giggle. I turned to see a pretty girl with medium length honey brown hair. She wasn't scantily clad or extremely made up. It threw me off.

"The parties are back that way," I pointed to the way she came. I wasn't rude but close to it.

"Well maybe you can help me," she carried on. Wow she really must be lost if she was asking for my help after that brush off. I thought girls could pick up on subtleties better than guys. "See I'm looking for…"

"May Lynn, there you are!" a second girl stumbled into the camp. She was completely made up. Her dark brown hair was pulled back to reveal her heavy eye shadow and lipstick that matched the bright pink dress draped on her frame. She noticed I was there and her eyes got wide. "Oh look, you've found us some help."

"Yeah, I was just getting ready to ask him…" May Lynn addressed me. Oh wait she was fishing for my name.

"Dom," I supplied slowly.

"…Dom if he could direct me to Jackson's camp," she finished. I perked up at the name. Jackson was the name of a guy from San Francisco I considered a friend of mine. Then again she could be thinking of a different guy.

"Jackson from San Fran?" I asked to check.

"Oh, you know him?" The second girl said excitedly.

I made the split decision to go say hello to him. Might as well since no one was here for me to yell at. "Yeah. Let's go."

We walked in silence for a few moments before May Lynn spoke up. "Thanks for your help." I grunted. She wasn't thrown off by my lack of response. "I'm May Lynn, and this is Tori my girlfriend."

"You're not really talkative," Tori added when I didn't respond. We made it to the camp, hails of hello flowing from Jackson and his crew. I heard her murmur, "Maybe after a few drinks."

Jackson and I gave each other a manly hug. "Long time, no see man."

"Didn't think San Fran's needed more driving lessons," I told him, my cocky racer persona back on.

"Still schooling people in LA I see," Jackson mentioned conversationally.

"Still schooling people out here too," Kessler, another racer in Jackson's crew said jovially. He and I shook hands and he passed me a Corona.

I nodded, taking a long pull from the bottle. "So what are you getting in to tonight?" I asked to keep conversation flowing. Jackson produced a deck of cards from his pocket. I grinned. Two hours later we were all more drunk than sober. The trash talk was flying. I was barely breaking even at poker. I was having fun, forgetting about my earlier anger.

"I'm out. Where's the john?" I asked, throwing down my cards in defeat. Jackson nodded to a trailer. I made quick work of the facilities and was just finishing drying my hands when I heard two voices rise in anger.

"Damn it Tori, I'm so tired of this," May Lynn yelled. I heard a smack then, "No don't touch me."

"Lynnie, it didn't mean anything. You're always taking things so personal."

"That's 'cause it is personal to me." I wanted to escape so I made a production of opening the door. I started to pass them but Tori reached for me.

"You know that I'm with May Lynn right?" she asked me heatedly.

"How could he!" May Lynn spat back, "You've been rubbing your ass over every man within ten steps of you all night!"

"You're gay?" I asked stupidly. May Lynn rolled her eyes, threw up her hands and stormed off. I heard a door slam in the back of the trailer. I looked at Tori's face.

"Oh no, don't start," I warned her. But the tears started to fall anyway.

"Help me," she wailed.

"What can I do?" I asked her incredulously. I started to back away but she grabbed my hand. Her grip was stronger than I had originally thought. She led me down the hall. I heard crying behind the door.

"Make her stop crying, please?" Tori begged. "I just don't want her to leave me." I sighed, my hand rubbing the back of my neck. I could commiserate. I opened the door. May Lynn was sprawled on the bed, her face buried in a pillow.

"Get the fuck out!" she yelled. Tori pushed me gently in the back and moved forward to sit on the edge of the bed. May Lynn kicked me. I did not sign on for this. Why was I doing this again? I hoped I got cosmic karma points for helping out two chicks I didn't even know.

"Baby," Tori said crawling on the bed behind me. She reached out to rub May Lynn's back. The girl flipped over and sat up. I grabbed her wrist before she could reach over and strike Tori.

"Look, if you're willing to fight each other, there's obviously something worth saving." My tone was hostile. My thigh l hurt where I had been kicked.

"Why are you sticking up for her?" May Lynn asked.

"'Cause I know how easy it is to damage what you love the most," I said honestly. Wow. No more drinks for me. May Lynn sighed, looking over at Tori who gave a watery smile.

"I really hate you," she said, flopping back on the bed. Tori flopped down on the other side. I felt her tug on my arm so I lay down between them to stare at the ceiling.

"I know," Tori said soberly.

"I find 'em and you get them to fight for your cause." We all gave a chuckle. The room got silent. I knew I should get up and find my own bunk soon but I felt really comfortable where I was. Plus my eyes were starting to get really tired. I would just rest them for another ten minutes.

"Dom, did you really lose someone you loved?" Tori asked quietly.

"Yep. More than once." May Lynn turned to her side to embrace me awkwardly. Tori jumped up, turned off the light and closed the door before returning to the bed. She embraced me on my other side. And the three of us fell asleep, each girl with an arm across my body so they could hold hands.

The next morning I woke up disoriented sandwiched between Tori and May Lynn. I didn't have a headache but I felt my body was going to need extra time to respond. I sat up, doing my best not to wake either girl but May Lynn stirred behind me. I started fumbling for my shoes.

"Thanks for helping us out last night," she chuckled softly. I gave her a small grin.

"Don't mention it. It'll ruin my rep," I joked. I hoped to make a secret getaway but I bumped into Kessler when I opened the door. He gave me a look that assumed the worst. I gave him a head nod, not bothering to dignify his curiosity with an explanation. I made it back to camp as everyone was just sitting down to breakfast. It really looked like it was mostly coffee for everyone including Vince. I wasn't going to be the only hung over person on Team Toretto today. Mia even looked a bit haggard which was odd. I walked past them, not willing to address anything without a quick shower and shave. Ten minutes later, I returned to a quiet that seemed deeper than when I'd left.

"You want breakfast?" Mia asked me cautiously. She handed me a cup of coffee, shaking a bottle of aspirin in my direction. I declined.

"I don't understand why you defied a direct order," I said to her sharply, my voice low. They were expecting me to flip out about her car. I'd wanted to deal with it yesterday. Today I just wanted to focus on racing. I really wanted to leave here in a better position than I had left last year.

"Direct order," she responded just as sharp. "What are we, your soldiers now?"

"No, you are my sister. _My _sister, _my _responsibility." I spat out jabbing a finger into my chest to accent the words.

"I'm not twelve, I'm twenty-one!"

"And I'm still older. I'm still in charge here!"

"But you're not in charge of us," Letty said, pushing between the two of us.

Vince stood to referee, tugging on Letty's arm, "Chill. Let them fix it." I smacked Vince's hand off her. I didn't want anyone touching her but me.

"Stay out of it!" Letty and I yelled at him. I stared into her face and she glared back. Finally someone was going to oblige me. I was ready to fight.

"You and your boyfriend are just as wrong as she is," I said, pointing to Mia but not taking my eyes off hers.

"I don't believe this! Dom, we're all grown here. What are you going to do, punish us?" she said mockingly.

"Boyfriend?" Leon interjected, "Where did you get that from?"

"Shut up Leon!" Letty and I yelled at him. We were still glaring at each other.

"You don't have to wait till we get home. I know you and Leon are screwing around. I just want to hear it from you."

Letty gave a hard bark of laughter, "You think I'm screwing _Leon_."

"Yep. I just want you to keep your promise to him and tell me to my face." She looked at me quizzically before her eyebrows rose.

"That's what this is about. Us keeping secrets from you. Well it looks like you figured it out all by yourself." Letty started to walk away but Leon stood in front of her, blocking her path. He looked serious.

"Letty girl, you promised. Tell him." Letty looked at him, her hands balling into fists. He stared back, his hands not touching her but ready to catch her if she decided to run.

"Yeah Letty, tell me," I growled.

"I love you idiot!" There was a stunned silence from everyone but Leon.

"Thank you!" he shouted exasperatedly.

I reached out to turn her to face me, "But what about your other date Wednesday?"

Letty turned to look away from me but I gripped her chin with my fingers, turning her face to mine. "Technically I already had long standing plans with Mia to go on her last test drive."

I pulled her closer, removing every space between us and whispered on her lips, "Why didn't you just tell me?"

"'Cause you deserved to sweat it out," she countered sourly. She was still angry. I chuckled. I could deal with angry. Letty loved me. And she wasn't with Leon. Did I mention she loved me? I squeezed her to me and she smacked my back before wrapping her arms around me. We held on to each other and the rest of the team edged away. I moved in to kiss her but she turned her face away.

"You aren't still mad," I stated. She shook her head.

"No. But we'll never make it to the line if we get started."

"Speak for yourself," I teased, pinching her behind before letting her go. She was right of course. What I wanted to do would take a lot longer than the time we had.


	13. Domestics

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Fast and the Furious or any recognizable thing mentioned in here. I'm just playing.**

* * *

**Chapter 13: Domestics**

"It was really close up until then end but I edged him out for the win," I said, a grin firmly in place.

"And you just had to call me at four am to tell me," Han's said calmly. He sounded amused though. I looked at the clock. It was only eight pm here. I was always getting the time difference wrong.

"Figured if you were half sleep you'd agree to come home."

"I dunno. I'm starting to really like it here. My Japanese is getting better." There was a rustle of sheets in the background.

"Private lessons?"

Han chuckled. "Lots of private lessons," he paused for a second, changing tactics, "Wasn't race wars weeks ago?"

"Yeah, about three months now."

"Did Letty ever come home?" Oh yeah. He wouldn't know anything about that. The last time Han and I talked was back in March before Letty had returned.

"Yeah. You could learn from her." He laughed. The rustling started up again.

"Try not to screw up this time," he said slowly but without heat. I heard Letty's car pull to a stop in the front of the house. Then there was the sound of rapid Japanese coming from some woman in the background on his end.

"I'll catch you later," I said humorously.

"Yeah, I need to get back to my lesson. Later." Han hung up and I shook my head laughing. Some people could be counted on to remain the same. I looked up as the door opened. Letty walked in followed by a woman I didn't know. The woman was very pretty, pregnant, and supporting a small baby on her hip.

"Daniel, we're fine. We'll see you when you get here," the woman said into the earpiece the baby was trying to grab. Letty crossed over to me and the woman followed absently. "Uh huh. Wait, here talk to Ti Ti."

Letty took the earpiece, "Chill bro. We'll be down the street. Just call when you all get back…ok bye."

The baby started squirming. I stood. "What ya got here?" I asked Letty, but I was staring at the kid squirm in her mother's arms.

"Dom this is Anya, my brother's uh…" she looked like the word was difficult to force out, "_fiancée_, his daughter Aaliyah," she pointed to the girl who had stopped squirming and was now patting Anya, then to Anya's stomach, "and his other daughter Delia."

Anya gave me a long sweeping look before smiling wide addressing Letty, "I see why you came back." I grinned. The kid looked at me to wiggle her arms and fingers at me. Oh no. I was not holding that kid. I motioned for them to sit down.

"Where is Daniel?" I asked, hoping they would explain why they were hanging out here with a baby instead of at the Ortiz's house.

"My family went to pick him up at the airport," Letty said giving me a look full of meaning. Guess they didn't know about Anya or the kids yet. I heard the roar of two more familiar engines. Vince and Jesse were home. No wait; there was Leon's engine too. The guys walked into the living room spotting the pregnant lady with the baby first. They looked cautiously like they didn't know whether they wanted to sit down or not.

"Uh hello," Jesse said timidly. Anya smiled.

"Anya, this is Jesse, Leon, and Vince. Guys meet Dom's mistress and his kids," Letty said in a deadpan. All faces turned to hers, including mine.

"Seriously?" Mia said, coming down the stairs. Anya, Letty, and I cracked up.

"No. She's Daniel's…" Letty said stumbling over the word.

"Fiancée," Anya said grinning. The atmosphere loosened up. Mia bent down to coo at the baby, who was hiding her face, playing shy.

"We got a movie and some popcorn," Jesse offered. I nodded. That would keep us from having to make silly conversation. Letty sat beside me, turning to whisper softly to me.

"This cool?" I nodded. I wasn't exactly comfortable around kids but it was a temporary thing. Very temporary.

Mia took up residence on the floor next to Anya, Aaliyah getting over her shyness to sit on Mia's lap. Leon gave me a silly look before sitting down next to Letty. She nudged his leg with her foot and he tugged her hair playfully. They grinned. Their friendship was something I had begun to tolerate a lot better now that jealously wasn't a factor anymore. Jesse brought the popcorn back, sitting next to Vince who was lounging on the floor. The movie started up. Half way through, Anya's cell rang. The little girl giggled.

"Hello," Anya greeted, "oh. Ok then. Just…I love you."

Letty turned to look at her. I guess the news wasn't going over well. Anya struggled to get up and Mia instinctively offered her hand to help.

"Where's the bathroom?" Anya asked.

"Upstairs," I told her. When she trudged upstairs I kissed Letty's temple. "One night. They can stay in Papa's room."

There was no need for us to discuss it further. Letty and I were so in tune to one another that we often had what Mia called 'cryptic conversations'. Letty nodded then followed Anya upstairs. Ten minutes later, Letty walked out the front door. Most likely to go support her brother. The little girl had started to get squiggly again. Mia let her go and she crawled awkwardly towards Vince who had his back propped against the couch. Aaliyah slapped Vince's arm and stomach. He ignored the tiny baby taps.

"Are we a hostel now?" Leon asked the room at large.

"More like a women's shelter for tonight," Mia replied crawling stealthily to try to catch the baby off guard. Vince's head turned slightly to watch Mia coming towards him. I could see how the move could easily be construed in a sexual manner but this was my sister. I tapped him in the back with my foot. He looked down at the baby who was now cooing in addition to slapping him. He snatched the kid up, laying her on his chest. She stared with her little girl eyes at him, taking in his face from all different angles then patted his face. He pretended not to notice, going back to watching the movie. She wiggled her hands to her eyes then moved them away, squealing when she did so. Great, she was going to play peek-a-boo. Mia frowned then sidled up to Vince to play with Aaliyah. Jesse, finally tearing his eyes away from the TV noticed that the baby was a lot closer than she'd been an hour ago. He joined the game of peek-a-boo, making the little girl laugh and start giggling again. Playing with Aaliyah became infectious.

The movie finished then Leon and Jesse started to play a racing game. Vince let go of the little girl, going into the kitchen and returning with two Coronas. Mia took over entertaining Aaliyah, kissing and cooing to her then getting kisses and coos in return. He marched past me, nodding his head for me to join him on the front steps. I took the Corona from him and we sat on the steps to wait for Letty. He must have known I was getting antsy with her being away. I didn't ever try to keep her from doing as she pleased, but I was still on edge. It was a by-product of her sabbatical in Virginia.

"That kid's a terror," Vince said suddenly. I worked to cover my grin. He was so full of crap. Vince was struggling to keep up the pretense that he didn't like kids. It didn't jive with this rough and tumble image. We each took a long swallow.

"Jackson invited us to races next Saturday," I said. Jackson had been working to get us out to the races in San Francisco ever since the team swept up at Race Wars. This year Vince had gone down in his ninth race and I had swept up the top prize. We were hot and Jackson wanted to make sure folks knew we were cool. He like Harry understood how influential being linked to our team could be.

"We working or you closing for the day?"

I turned the question over in my mind, "Let's take the day off. We can go up early and relax."

Vince nodded. I trusted him to take care of the logistics. Correction, I trusted him to make sure Mia took care of the logistics. He'd also get the word out to Leon and Jesse. We didn't really talk about much as we finished our beers. However we finished just in time. Mia was pacing the floor rocking Aaliyah who was bawling inconsolably.

"What did you do to her?" Vince said gruffly grabbing her as she wiggled her hands and fingers towards him. Aaliyah still had tears streaming but she was quietly rubbing her drooping eyes.

"She's sleepy V," Mia said rubbing the little girl's back. Aaliyah let her head fall to his shoulder and he rocked her. Mia shook her head then headed upstairs grumbling about homework. She was ticked that the baby had quieted right down for Vince. Aaliyah stirred once when Leon and Jesse had started to argue about possible cheating in the game. One look from Vince had them scurrying downstairs. I turned down the volume on the TV and we sat waiting for Letty to return. At quarter to twelve the door opened. Letty was rubbing her forehead like she had a headache. She paused in front of me and I stood, placing my arm around her neck.

"Danny's an idiot," she whispered exasperatedly.

Vince stood too, Aaliyah still asleep in his arms. He pushed his arms out gently. Neither of us made a move to take the little girl from his arms. His face tensed. I didn't want the kid. Apparently Letty was as comfortable with her niece as I was.

"What if her head falls off?" Letty said awkwardly, her face twisting into a grimace.

"Her head's not going to come off Letty," Vince said quietly like he was trying to explain the difference between a Phillips and a flat head screw driver to a small child. We stared at the kid again. Vince huffed. He was losing patience. I carefully opened my arms, Vince transferring her to me.

"Your brother isn't the only idiot," Vince threw at Letty. She scowled at his retreating back. Letty locked up then we walked upstairs. She carefully opened the door to my father's room. I tried not to think about the twinge I felt at being in here as I placed the baby carefully beside her sleeping mother. We tiptoed across the hall and I helped her get into bed. We were too exhausted to do anything more than sleep. The following morning I trudged downstairs to see everyone seated at the table, chatting away. Daniel was there playing with his daughter. He looked tired but happy.

"Thanks Dom," he said in lieu of a greeting. I nodded then took my seat at the head of the table. Conversation flowed punctuated by Aaliyah's coos and the scrape of forks to plates. Finally it was time for us to get to work. Daniel, Anya, and Aaliyah left first. They were going to stay with the Ortiz's now that the furor had died down. Mia kissed the little girl's cheeks and tickled her belly. Jesse gave her feet a tickle, Leon patted her head gently. But Aaliyah wiggled her fingers at Vince and he gave her a quick kiss on her forehead. She rubbed her head in confusion. He had tickled her forehead with his whiskers. Letty and I waved. Anya gave us an odd look before she left, making us promise to hang out with them before they left.

Friday afternoon the Ortiz's had a barbeque at their house. The whole team showed up to say goodbye to Daniel, Anya, and Aaliyah. Daniel was going back to join his unit in Spain. Anya, Aaliyah, and unborn Delia were going back to Virginia to wait for him. I felt sad for them, knowing that they would have to separate from each other. It made me stick closer to Letty than I normally would have at her parent's house. Letty had gone into the kitchen with her cousin Marisol and I could see them through the window laughing. Daniel was telling stories about the Navy and his shipmates but I couldn't focus entirely. I was too busy watching Letty take a drink of water. I really was going to ask her about that water bottle thing she did with her teeth and tongue.

"…I'm surprised Letty hasn't spent most of the summer at the beach here," I heard Anya mention. I shrugged, still watching Letty as she approached. She was wearing a dress with spaghetti straps that fell to her knees today. Mrs. Ortiz had looked happy to see that. Letty sat in a chair next to me with a grin.

"I was just telling them Ti Ti how you practically lived on the beach in VA," Daniel explained.

"Yeah, our girl came back with a wicked tan," Marisol said with a smile.

"I go to the beach here too," Letty defended. I rubbed her knee absently. Yeah I remembered the last time she and I went to the beach. I smirked.

"Not that often though," Mia tacked on.

"And to think Parker practically had to drag her away most days," Daniel continued reminiscing. Letty stiffened slightly under my hand. I'd slid it up to trace small circles on her inner thigh, right above her knee.

"Speaking of which, how is Parker?" Anya asked rubbing her belly absently.

"Oh he's cool. He's using his R and R to visit his parents." Letty shifted slightly away from me. I'd moved my fingers higher.

"We should call him. I'll probably miss him by the time I get back," Anya said conversationally reaching for Daniel's cell. Letty stood up suddenly. Daniel and Anya looked at her, trying to gauge her reaction. Daniel flashed me a quick glance but held his hand out for the phone.

"Maybe we should call him later," he said before changing the subject to stories of Spain. Letty walked across the yard and into the kitchen. I waited ten seconds then followed. She looked at me, her face blank.

"You need somethin'?" she asked me. I swirled the cup in my hand, letting the ice at the bottom clink together. She opened the fridge and I stepped up behind her. I knew that the door would cover what I was doing to anyone looking outside. I let my hands slide up her legs under her skirt. She brushed against me.

"You ready to go yet?" my fingers crept up to tickle her lower belly beneath her dress. She hissed.

"Yes." I nipped her neck then removed my hands. She smoothed the dress down and I stepped back, closing the door. We made our goodbyes, Mia giving us a knowing glance. The two of us hustled across the street, knowing the rest of the occupants were still out. I pressed her against the wall when we reached the small landing on the stairs. I kissed her and she responded wildly, practically crawling up my body. I placed my hands on her behind to lift her up. She wrapped her legs around my waist and we kept kissing as I carried her to our room, our bed. We flung our clothes off hastily. The two of us were frenzied. I couldn't stop touching her. She was selfish tonight, taking what I gave and demanding more. She kept whispering to me to let go and lose control. I was already feeling out of control. Or at least I thought I was until she nipped my ear. I don't remember much after that.

When I came to it was dark out. I panicked when I first felt the warm body lying next to me. And then I stroked her back, realizing it was Letty. I hadn't imagined the explosive sex. It really had happened. And my body clearly remembered and wanted a repeat performance. I absently started rubbing circles into her back. She murmured but didn't stir. Her cell phone started going off but she didn't seem fazed. I got up to silence it but it stopped. Opening the phone to turn the volume off I noticed that missed call was flashing for attention. I shut it without looking. I wasn't going to police who she talked to. I'd learned a valuable lesson about assumptions when she first came back.

I pulled on my pants and shirt, shuffling downstairs for a snack. The team was lounging idly watching TV. Bypassing them I went to the kitchen to make a sandwich before taking up residence in the living room. TV got boring but it was only ten now, still early. Leon popped in _Gone in Sixty Seconds_ and we started debating the merits of the cars the characters had to steal.

"You have to admit the Hummer is plain bad ass even if you can't race it," Leon threw out.

"Boo!" Jesse cried out in disgust. We all laughed. I heard Letty's footfalls on the stairs and she appeared in a pair of my boxers and one of her t-shirts. She sat next to me, pulled her feet up, and rested her chin on her knees. From the flickering light of the TV I could see her blank expression. Talk swirled around us but she didn't join in. I started rubbing her back and she hid her face in her knees. Something was wrong but I wasn't going to bring it up in front of everyone else. She'd tell me when we were alone. Ten minutes later she raised her head, uncurled her body, and leaned over to kiss me slow and deep. I groaned, having never fully gotten over the desire to go for round two.

I heard the snickers of Leon and Vince as we pulled apart. I lazily dropped another kiss on her lips before we went back upstairs. This time with Letty was slower than before but still filled with passion. She was rough with me too which surprisingly amped me up more. Her nails raked across my back, she bit my shoulder trying to keep quiet. But I didn't care about anyone else but her at the moment so I pushed harder too. The scream she gave me was unexpected and sexy as hell. It built from her, long and deep, rising in volume involuntarily. We looked into each other's eyes intensely, both spent. After a moment I started to roll off her but she protested.

"Stay." So I did. I propped myself on my elbows, playing with her hair. I kissed her face and she kissed me back.

"You ok?" I asked. She sighed heavily.

"Yeah. I'm right where I'm supposed to be."

* * *

The following day we drove the six hours up to San Francisco. Mia rode with me, staring out the window as she tried to visually keep up with the game of tag Leon, Letty, Vince, and Jesse were playing on the highway.

"You could go faster if you wanted to," she told me lazily. I maintained my speed, letting my mind wander to the night before. Letty never told me what was bothering her but I knew it was still on her mind this morning. Mia started flipping through radio stations. We still had five hours of driving to do and she was getting restless.

"How's school going?"

"It's going," she told me before launching into a long explanation about her classes, her major, her classmates. As long as I interjected an 'uh huh' or 'ok, yep', she kept chatting about college. I expected her to be exhausted with the subject when she reminded me about the tuition bill. The university payments were steeper now she was into her program, taking classes at the main campus.

"We'll manage Mi," I reassured her. She nodded in an absent way. Tag had lost its thrill and now we were driving in a pack.

"Dom, being around Aaliyah got me thinking," Mia started.

"You're too young for a baby Mi," I said sternly. She looked over at me.

"Not me. You." I took my foot off the gas. It took me a second to realize I'd done it. The blast from Vince's horn behind me got me back on track.

"No."

"You haven't thought about it?"

I shook my head. Twenty-three was too young for a kid. At twenty-one Letty was too young for a kid too. I didn't think I even wanted any kids. I barely wanted someone else's kid around me. I didn't know what to do with them. Plus I was really enjoying my life right now. And the fast life, the ability to do what I wanted when I wanted to do it, didn't work with a kid in tow.

"I'm responsible for enough people right now," I told her.

"That's just it. You're not responsible for us."

"Are you sure you're not projecting your desire to be an aunt on me?"

"Dom, I'm not saying you and Letty should start popping out kids right this second," she marched on.

"I don't think Letty even _likes_ kids," I countered.

"But I'd support you if decided to have some," Mia continued.

"Are you pregnant?" I asked her.

"No." We sat in silence a few moments.

"Daniel's four years older than I am," I explained, "He doesn't have a criminal record. Or a house full of misfits to feed. Or a sister to put through college."

She nodded her head, choosing her words carefully. "Dom, no one is expecting you to be Papi."

"I know."

"You aren't required to take care of Vince. Or Leon. Or Jesse. Or Letty. Or me even."

"Mia, I know it's not required. I…"

"No you don't. You are free to live your life however you choose. I just want you to know that you can make a life for yourself that isn't centered on keeping the rest of us happy at your expense."

We sat in silence again. I thought about what she said. Papi's death had been hard on me. But the months following my release had really challenged me. I'd felt trapped when I couldn't afford to support them. But not because I felt I was taking on my father's responsibilities with Mia or the rest of the people sharing my house. I just felt I owed it to them to be as good of a man as my father had been. Vince and Letty had stepped in and helped out when Mia had needed them. Leon and Jesse had supported my family with friendship in addition to mechanical skill. I loved my life with them. The team had become my family.

To be fair I thought about what I would do if things had been different. If Papi had lived or I hadn't given a damn about looking out for them. It was difficult for me to see my life not including Vince or Han. They had been my best friends before my life had changed drastically. Mia of course would still be in my life. But I wouldn't be worried about tuition payments. I'd be more concerned with beating up the guys she dated. Hell, I might have fixed up the Acura for her behind Papi's back and taught her to race myself. I'd probably never gotten to know Leon and Jesse. The thought was sobering considering Leon and I had crossed paths before I left for prison and I hadn't even noticed. And Letty. Without the break Lompoc had provided I may have easily broken up with her, never realizing how good she was for me. Or we'd probably be together with at least one kid if not two or three. I wasn't exactly careful with her before I left. To be honest she still had the power to make me forget to be careful even now. Heat flooded my face thinking about last night. Mia might not have as long of a wait to be an aunt after all.

"You sure this isn't a ploy to become an aunt?" She laughed.

"Why? After last night you got something to tell me?" she asked cheekily. I turned up the radio to concentrate on the road.

Later that night I found myself staring at Letty across Jackson's crowded house. He was keeping up a steady stream of introductions and commentary for me and Vince. I'd thankfully won my race out here, and the chatter in the crowd was that I was still 'King Dom of the LA race scene'. If it wasn't for my racing attitude being firmly in place I would have grinned in glee. It felt good to be the king. Vince and Jackson filtered into the crowd. I saw Jesse move past me some random girl whispering in his ear, her hands up his shirt. He looked like he was totally focused so I moved on, working to get to Letty. I ran into Kessler instead.

"Oh hey man," he said leaning heavily on the girl standing next to him. He was wasted. I nodded. "I see your girlfriend is back." He waved his hand sloppily through the air. "Or maybe I should say girlfriends." I looked over to see Letty talking to May Lynn and Tori. I gave Kessler one raised eyebrow. He mock whispered to his companion, "That dude is a beast. He can even get lesbians to give it up."

The girl rolled her eyes. She led him off. I hope she found him a place to sleep the alcohol off. Wow he was way off the mark. I made my way over to the three women. Tori saw me first. She was still as made up as she had been that night at race wars. She threw her arms around me and I could smell the alcohol on her breath. So she wasn't exactly sober. Good to know.

"Hey Dom," she giggled pulling back. I saw her sway slightly so I put a hand on her arm to keep her on her feet.

"Yeah, hey Dom," May Lynn said also hugging me. She had on some makeup tonight and a fancy looking top but she was still wearing her jeans. Subtle changes worked for her. She did not smell like she was on her way to being as drunk as her girlfriend. "We were just asking your friend about her car."

I looked at Letty's face. It was carefully neutral.

"Do you two know anything about cars?" I jokingly asked.

Tori giggled, "Oops, you got us!"

She swayed again but May Lynn caught her this time. "Yep, I guess we won't be bagging another member of Team Toretto tonight," May Lynn teased dryly.

"I didn't think you liked to share," I stated.

"Well we made an exception in your case," Tori joked. Letty and I weren't touching but I was close enough to notice her body stiffen.

"Kessler?" I asked.

May Lynn nodded, "He has a really big mouth."

Tori squinted at Letty. She looked between our faces before her mouth made a comical 'o'. She pointed at Letty, "You must be the one that got away." May Lynn looked at Letty critically too. Her face went from cheerful to embarrassment in half a second.

"Um, you do know that we're joking right?" she leaned in to whisper to Letty.

"Whatever," Letty said. She sounded calm but I heard the hostility behind the word.

"Damn. We just tried to pick up your girlfriend," Tori slurred. That seemed to thaw Letty's cool.

"Excuse me?" Letty asked sounding genuinely lost. May Lynn kissed Tori on her cheek.

"We're together. Dom's not really our type," May Lynn answered.

"But if you're free…"Tori trailed off.

Letty's voice completely thawed and she joined in the joke, "Thanks for the offer but you've bagged enough members of Team Toretto."

* * *

"Camille, how are you?" I asked as she went on her toes to give me a quick hug at races. She smiled, thankful at the acknowledgement. Some of the regular racers glanced over at her appreciatively.

"Hoping to get a second chance to ride you Dom," she said loud enough for people in our immediate vicinity to hear. Wow. That was pretty bold considering it was common knowledge that Letty and I were together. I gave her a cocky grin which she returned, sauntering off to rejoin her friends in the crowd. Vince had his arms wrapped around a pretty brunette tonight. He gave me a violent look. I gave him one nod rolling my eyes and he relaxed. It was just more rumors. Nothing more.

January had come and I had seen the increase in rumors and speculation surrounding the team. Guys really could gossip worse than chicks sometimes. The stories we heard about all the women I'd taken home were amazing. At this rate I would have to be constantly having sex, sometimes twice a day just to get them all in. I wasn't surprised that there were a lot of women like Camille who didn't mind the alleged hookups with me. Some even went as far to make up stories to support the claim. Of course it made me look like a real big ladies man but I could see that it was hurtful to Letty. She had to go to races every week pretending that she couldn't hear what people were saying. And even though she knew it wasn't true it still smarted to know that the people we hung out with thought I was cheating on her.

What I found astounding were the number of stories that surrounded my relationship with Letty considering I was supposed to be cheating on her all the time. My behavior at races and around town was reported as being totally devoted to Letty otherwise. I was an obsessed lunatic who was not going to give her up no matter how many girls I screwed. I was also keeping her very satisfied in bed which is the only reason she stuck around. Factoring these rumors in, I would have to up the sex to three times a day to be giving it to her as much as I supposed to be too.

Hector approached me, a gleam in his eye. He was really enjoying his role as race coordinator. We shook hands. "Hey Dom, feel like making a lot of cash tonight?"

"Depends. Are they worthy to race?" I asked cockily. Despite my feelings I kept my racer persona on.

"Toretto knows I'm worthy. But is he brave enough to race me?" Johnny Tran announced to the crowd.

"I thought you were going to stay away," I stated evenly.

"This ain't your turf Toretto."

"Oh I don't know about that. Dom's King around here so technically…" Sam spoke up. I threw up my arms and the crowd went wild, lending credence to Sam's claim. Tran looked flustered. He hadn't been here since we'd parted ways in the desert two years ago. A lot had changed.

"Technicalities don't speak to your bravery Toretto," he switched up.

"My bravery doesn't make you worthy to race me either." It was really up to Tran to provide a reason for me to race him. I was in charge here. He couldn't goad me into any match up I didn't want to be in. And I didn't feel like racing him really. I still had the scars from the last time we'd run into each other. He stepped right into my face, speaking really low so only I could hear him.

"I'm tired of people talking about my sister, making her out to be your whore. You just don't learn your lesson do you Toretto."Aww man. The rumors about Joi Tran had been vicious. If the rumors were to be believed, Joi had been my mistress the whole time, something that Letty had tolerated all those months before she'd left. I'd played around with Joi, promised to leave Letty, but dropped her when Letty returned. The whole thing was ridiculous. I'd broken up with Joi long before Letty and I got back together.

"Consider your sources before you come challenge me again Tran," I said, turning my back on him. I was disgusted. The crowd around us 'oohed'. Tran was humiliated. Angrily he pushed me. I turned to put a fist in his face but Vince stopped me.

"Come on Dom, just race him so he can crawl back across town," Vince said deliberately loud enough for the crowd to agree. A fist fight could easily end in more gun violence with Johnny. A race would serve as a non-violent humiliation to him and entertainment for the crowd. I shook Vince off.

"What are we racin' for?" My tone was back to casual arrogance. Tran seemed to regain his earlier swagger.

"Pink skips," Tran threw out. I gave him a hard piercing look. He goaded, "Small price to pay for honor."

I walked over to the seven to find Letty standing there, pink slip stuck between her fingers. I approached her, reaching down to sweep her up in one arm while taking the slip in my other hand. We kissed briefly before I returned her to the ground.

"Guess you really put it on her," she told me in her nonchalant tone that was part of her racer persona. This whole situation really sucked. I returned to give Hector my slip then we reconvened at the line. I really wanted to put Tran in his place tonight. I was tired of his sister coming between the peace that he and I were enjoying staying away from one another.

Hector let Camille start the race off. Johnny and I flew off the line. I sped through the gears. Johnny was keeping up. But he must have feared that he wasn't going to continue to keep up because he gave himself a shot of nitrous for a quick lead after he shifted from fourth to fifth. Too soon loser. I waited a second before releasing my shot. I ended up crossing the quarter mile half a length in front of him. I blew out a breath preparing to stop and turn around. I wasn't expecting the t-bone hit Johnny delivered in the middle of my turn. I felt the seven roll, the glass shatter. The metal scraped the pavement, the motion jarring me since I was rolling around, the seat belt keeping me from smashing onto the top of the car when it stopped upside down.

I heard the screaming and pandemonium as people flew into action. There was a lot of tire screeching. I knew people must be leaving the scene. It would be harder to lie and say I was in a hit and run accident if we were still set up for a drag race in progress. I reached for my seat belt, my hands clumsy. I realized belatedly that they were covered in blood. Shit. This meant another trip to the hospital. I hoped I got that really good nurse who kept me happily drugged up the last time.

* * *


	14. Hostage

**Disclaimer: Don't own, don't sue.**

**A/N: Big thanks for the reading. Much love for the reviews.**

**

* * *

**

**Chapter 14: Hostage**

"I'll be back in an hour."

"But Dom," Mia protested.

I cut across her, "Just pay it. I'll have money for the insurance tomorrow."

She left me alone as I walked out to the Charger. Cranking it up I noticed I would need gas. I waited until I got around the corner before I started cursing under my breath. It was times like this that I missed the seven and what it had represented. The Mazda was the car I could rip and run in. I felt like I could solve most of my life's problems in that car: winning races to pay the bills. The rest of the team, at the complete irreparable demise of the seven, had stepped up. We'd kept afloat for the first month. And then my medical bills started pouring in. I had been fortunate that I'd only spent one night there 'for observation'. I'd only had a dislocated shoulder, bumps, bruises, and a couple deep cuts from glass. But it was still expensive even when they put me on a payment plan.

Since the insurance company had already totaled the seven, they weren't willing to make another payout on it. So for the time being I was stuck with what I had. The garage was still doing steady business but I noticed that we'd burned a lot of the money we made here on constant repairs and mods to our cars. That and having parts sent overnight from Japan, not because we needed to, but because we could. And while Harry had let us run up a tab at _The Racer's Edge_ it was based on an understanding that I would regular payments on it. And this month I just didn't know where it would come from.

Mia's next tuition payment was coming up which is what caused me to leave the café in a huff. I found myself in front of the bank, about to do something that I had hoped not to do at all. Exhaling a deep breath I walked inside to mortgage the garage.

"Hey," I heard around one am when I finally returned to the house. I squinted to see the figure sitting on the steps leading to the front door.

"What are ya doin' out here baby?" I asked, slightly slurred. I made my way up the steps to sit next to her. We didn't touch, just sat in silence looking out onto the deserted street. Her hair was pulled up in a messy ponytail. She was wearing one of my pullover sweatshirts. It was too big for her. Her legs were pulled under it so all I could see were her toes. She was thinking again. She had waited for me to come home but she'd probably never admit it.

"You smell like a cheap bar," she said wrinkling her nose in distaste.

"Yep."

"Is it as bad as before?" She was asking about our money problems. I didn't need her to clarify.

"Worse." Letty uncurled herself standing to stretch. I followed her upstairs, into the shower, then into our room. Her wet hair tickled my nose as we lay spooned in the bed. There was no need to talk.

The following morning I was the only person left in the house when I woke. I was surprised I'd slept this late. Mia started bustling around the moment I pulled up to the café at lunch time. The rest of the team was already there having their sandwiches. I took the seat open next to Vince, my stomach dancing when Mia placed the turkey sandwich in front of me. I took a roll of money out of my shirt pocket, handing it to her. She looked perplexed.

"What's this?"

"Insurance money," I told her around my bite of sandwich.

"But you gave me money earlier," she said staring at the money in her hand. I paused to finish chewing.

"I did?" I asked slowly. Her forehead wrinkled. Vince's hand reached out to grab my chips.

"Yeah. Letty gave it to me."

I shrugged. I don't know where that money had come from but it hadn't come from me. "Here's the rest. Keep it and pay something else." I turned back to finish eating, my plate missing just about all of my chips.

"We'll see you back at the garage," Vince said standing up. I gave him a filthy look. Leon, Jesse, and Letty followed him, leaving me alone with my sister and my sandwich. I intended to ask about the mystery of the extra money when I finally got to the garage but everyone was working hard. Unwilling to disturb productivity I dug right in. We could talk later at dinner. But dinner came and went. I just didn't have the heart to ask her where she'd gotten the money. It would probably lead to a question about where I was getting my money from. And for the moment I just didn't want to share.

Around eight pm Letty ran upstairs, changed into tight leather pants and a colorful t-shirt that hugged her body. I didn't mention it when she grabbed her keys and mumbled something about going out. I wasn't going to police her. But it was my turn to sit on the steps. But she didn't come home right away. I conceded at two-thirty to go to bed, crawling under the sheets to pretend that I was asleep if she decided to show up. When I woke up at seven I noticed that she never made it to bed.

If I went downstairs and she wasn't home I was going to break my rule and call her. I wouldn't be able to pretend that I wasn't worried about her. But the table was full with the right number of people when I made it there for breakfast. Letty and I shared a look. I had nothing to worry about so I wouldn't pry.

Two weeks later, the payment from the bank came through. I breathed a sigh of relief. Then I paid the bills. I promised myself that this was a temporary fix. But I didn't look for a new car. And Letty still kept disappearing, coming home with money that she'd stuff in my pockets or the coffee can that held our gas money. One night I was sitting on the floor of our room, the contents of the top dresser drawer spread around me. I was determined to be up when she got home tonight. I filtered through the detritus throwing out old receipts and phone numbers from really random girls that I'd never called. I opened a plastic bag that I had tossed in there haphazardly three and a half years ago.

The contents inside filled me with memories. Here were Mia's letters, written to me while I was in Lompoc. I pulled out a crude photo album I had glued together while I was there. I flipped through to review the pictures, pausing to give each one a detailed search. I spent a long time looking at picture of them at their second Christmas while I was away. Han, Daphne, Vince, Letty, and Mia were all smiling at me, their younger selves clearly happy. It was surreal to look back on the memories that had comforted me, made me long for home. I read over the letters again, picking out phrases that made a smile ghost my lips, a chuckle escape my chest even now. _Daphne's pregnant…Finally my lunch will be safe!...I am curious about how he makes his money but if anyone else knows, they're not saying…Would you tell me?_

Mia's words swirled in my head. I had known that Han was doing work of a questionable nature but I'd respected him enough to keep my mouth shut. I'd felt my portion of guilt for it. It still haunted me to see pictures of Daphne and realize that his work had resulted in her death. Work that had put food on my table, socks in my drawer in prison. I was lucky my best friend didn't resent me. I placed the letters and the album in my saved pile then reached in the bag to retrieve the business card at the bottom. Lucky. I hadn't thought about that guy since I left. I wondered vaguely if he'd gotten out of prison. Another smile ghosted my lips. I wondered if he'd murdered his cheating girlfriend and landed back in. Maybe I would check in the morning. I replaced the things I wanted to keep in the drawer before sweeping up the rest of the garbage.

Finally ready to concede defeat I turned off the light to lie in bed. I was just starting to fall asleep when I heard Letty's car come to a stop in front of the house. I could hear her trying to keep quiet as she shuffled through the house. She bypassed the room, turning on the shower within seconds of closing the bathroom door. So I hadn't waited in vain after all. Letty entered the room a short while later and I heard her fumbling for the top drawer, then my wallet. She found it and there was a rustle of money as she stuffed it clumsily into the fold. The drawer closed then she rustled around some more, finding clothes to wear to bed in the dark. I'd had time so my eyes had already adjusted to the dark. Watching her trying to gently crawl into bed so she wouldn't wake me made my heart hurt. She was working so hard to help me. She laid her head on my bare chest, stroking it lazily.

"Thanks for not scaring the crap out of me when I first walked in," she said.

"No problem." I started tracing circles on her back. She knew I was waiting for an explanation.

She gave a deep soul weary sigh, "It's not a secret."

I rubbed my hands over her back feeling her settle. I was waiting for her to tell me what she was doing when stayed out all night. Instead the admission I'd wanted to keep under wraps popped out, "I mortgaged the garage."

She kissed my chest, "So we're all moonlighting."

"I'd really like it if you stopped," I told her carefully. Demands with her wouldn't go over very well.

"You miss me at night?" she teased. I grunted in response making her laugh and rolling on top of me. Instinctively I adjusted to hold her in a loose hug.

"Sometimes."

"Well now you know how I feel when you make major decisions without me," she countered seriously.

"It's my garage Letty," I said gruffer than I had intended. She didn't flinch.

"Good to know." Her tone was so flippant that I felt my temper rise.

"I don't care where you go at night. But stop it."

"Excuse me?" she said working to push up away from me. I reinforced my hold.

"Now." The tone I used implied the words, _'you heard me'_.

"Would you have a problem if any of the boys were out there, late night, bringing money in?" she said heatedly before biting me. She knew the answer was no.

"But I'm not sleeping with them, I'm sleeping with you. Or trying to sleep," I added. Letty changed direction, flopping listlessly on top of me. I loosened my hold then slid her onto her back so I could lie on my side, trapping her under my leg.

"You can chill Dom. I'm just..." I cut across her.

"And now you're not."

"Fu…" I kissed her.

"Play nice."

She heaved a sigh like she was struggling for patience, "I'm being really _nice_ right now by being honest. I'm not quitting."

"I'm not discussing this with you anymore."

"So you're the only person who can work on his own. This is exactly what I was talking about with you and Tran," Letty yelled at me. She turned her head from me and closed her eyes, "You never learn."

I didn't respond and we eventually fell into restless sleep. The morning brought the revelation that Letty had been telling me the truth. She was going to keep doing whatever it was that she was doing. But I thought of Lucky's card now tucked into my pocket and Letty's final words last night. Savagely I told myself that I had learned. And to prove it after I talked to Lucky I asked Vince to come with me to meet him.

"Dominic! And this must be your friend Vince," Lucky greeted us his arms swept wide. I stepped up, giving him a manly hug. Vince didn't unfold his arms from his chest, still assessing the situation. "Come on up to the veranda, I've got mojito's."

I gave Vince a raised eyebrow as we followed Lucky onto his covered wraparound porch. _Veranda!_ He offered us seats facing the ocean and tall glasses filled with the minty rum concoction.

"I'm really glad you called me Dominic," Lucky said smiling and directing conversation to Vince, "You know this guy was my best friend in Lompoc. Even if he let me get my ass beat."

Vince gave him a less frosty look. Vince did not give his trust easily but Lucky didn't seem put off by his behavior.

"You got respect though," I offered. I wasn't going to apologize for not getting involved.

"Yeah yeah, this guy," Lucky laughed. I gave him a grin. An older woman came out of the house supporting tray laden with pastries. The pastries made it to the table, she refreshed Lucky's drink. When the woman disappeared I decided to assuage my curiosity.

"What ever happened to that girlfriend you told me about?"

"Oh, that!" he chuckled, "She's running up credit cards at the big mall in the sky now." Vince gave him a raised eyebrow.

"That's unfortunate," I told him lazily.

"Yes. But enough about me, what can I do for you?" He took a sip of his drink, pushing the plate of pastries towards Vince.

"I could use a way to supplement my income."

Lucky sat back in his chair, steeped his fingers while giving Vince an once-over, "Just you or your friend too?"

"The both of us," Vince spoke up. Lucky hummed to himself, assessing Vince again.

"Well you like to drive right? You're decent drivers," neither of us nodded or responded as Lucky tapped his chin in thought, "Let's see. I could use some guys to boost cars. You ever boost cars?"

Vince and I looked at him in distaste. It was one thing to race. But to steal another man's ride was inviting bad car karma. I shook my head no to reinforce our dismissal of that idea. Lucky shrugged then provided another option.

"You two are mechanics right? You know how to dismantle cars and such. I have a chop operation that could use your help. How fast can you salvage parts?"

Vince shook his head no before I could even look at him. I agreed. That was just as bad as boosting cars. I wouldn't feel comfortable stripping cars when I spent my life putting them together. Lucky shrugged again.

"Alright. You two are going to be difficult to place. Let me think. Let me think," he trailed off. We sat in the shade, hearing the sea crash lightly against the sand. Lucky took another swallow, giving Vince a third long look before speaking, "I think this is a good gig for you but you'll have to carry guns."Vince and I didn't commit right away.

"Keep talking," Vince told him impatiently. Lucky looked bolstered by Vince's response.

"A few years ago we took over a small distribution operation. I could use your help keeping people honest and on schedule. We issue guns for intimidation. Fortunately you two don't look like you need them," Lucky looked at me and smiled at my muscles. "And I can boast that I haven't had anyone get shot in at least two months," Lucky looked at Vince's stony face, "although that might change."

"So basically you want us to be enforcers," I said evenly.

"Um, I wasn't thinking quite so mafia. More like I want you to coordinate and oversee the drops made between the suppliers and the clients," Lucky elaborated, "You'll be in charge of your own territory of shops. They provide lists of what they need and you reconcile them with what you have in your warehouse." Vince looked unmoved so Lucky moved to seal the deal. "It comes with a lackey to do your grunt work like get parts you need… or pastries."

I looked at the plate of pastries then back at Vince who still hadn't moved. The fact that he wasn't eating was a big tell. He wasn't exactly comfortable with this job either but it was a lot better than the first two options. We wouldn't be doing the grunt work so maybe we could pretend that we didn't know that the parts we were going to supply were lifted from boosted cars.

"How much does this pay?" Vince asked after several tense moments. Internally I breathed a sigh of relief. If he was willing to back me up on this, Lucky must have made it through Vince's sixth sense of trust. Lucky eyed me and I nodded my agreement to continue negotiations.

"Thirty-five hundred a week," Lucky said, taking another sip from his rapidly disappearing mojito, "each."

Vince reached for a pasty, taking a big bite. Oh yeah, he was willing to go onboard. His appetite was no longer affected by qualms.

"So when do we start?" I asked.

Lucky clapped his hands together, "Right now. But erm Vince, I'd really like to keep my shooting tally low."

* * *

One afternoon in May I found myself in the quiet garage, working on replacing the brakes and tires on my new rx-7. After two months of working for Lucky I'd squirreled enough money away to put down half on a new car. It had taken me most of the day to realize that I couldn't fathom driving anything else. Not when I had the resources. The Mazda for me was the same as the Charger was to my Papa. It was part of what I had formed my identity around. Jesse had laughed at me when I pulled up to the house in it, before promptly going to resurrect his old ideas for my previous seven to update for this one.

After I finally got the last lug nut tightened, I closed up and left for the house. It was decked out for Memorial Day. We were supposed to have a party to celebrate both Memorial Day and the belated end of classes for Mia tonight. The rest of the team was already here working under Mia's direction. Or that had been the plan. When I walked into the house though, the guys were sitting on the couch playing a game and ribbing one another. I didn't pause, trudging upstairs to get ready myself. I passed Mia's room where music was playing louder than normal. Guess she and Letty were in there sharing secrets again. It seemed like Letty was always talking to everyone else more than she was talking to me lately.

But I didn't let the thoughts bother me. Instead I got ready for the party then spent the first two hours of it grilling for the masses. We were having a good time too. Sam's friend had volunteered to DJ for Mia so people were dancing, the dancing getting wilder as the booze started flowing. I grinned. This had the makings of a really great party.

"Hey Dom wanna beer?" Justine offered me, coming to stand beside the grill.

"Of course he does. Thanks," Letty said in a steely voice. She took the beer from Justine and took a deep swallow. Justine walked away, partly stunned, partly embarrassed that she had been caught.

"Letty," I exhaled. She just gave me a blank look before handing me the beer and stalking off. Tonight she was wearing black leather pants, a leather vest, and nothing else. I watched the crowd part around her, guys forgetting themselves for a moment and ogling her body. I felt the old temptation to rip out their eyes back in play. Leon had appeared out of the crowd and magically by my side, his hand outstretched for the tongs.

"Get going before she does," he warned, shooing me away from the grill. I didn't really need the reminder. The crowd, which had parted for Letty seconds before practically scattered as I ate up the path she'd just taken. I heard the whispering and sniggering but I didn't care what they thought. I made it to the front hallway when Mia came through the front door. She took one look at my face and grinned.

"Well there was a lot of cursing but she said she'd be back to deal with you later," Mia said smugly before moving into the mass of people in the living room. I went to rest by the stairs but Vince caught up to me, gesturing that we should go outside. I'd forgotten. We had a quick drop-off to oversee tonight. We got into the Maxima, Vince not wasting time assessing my mood.

"Who was it tonight?"

"Justine."

"You should really deal with this."

"How? I can't stop people from talking."

"No. But you can refuse to light your own fire."

"And how am I supposed to do that," I grumbled sourly.

"Stop being nice to them. Brush 'em off. Cold and firm. You did a really good job of it when you and Letty first broke up." I looked at Vince's profile. He was right. I knew how to keep girls off me when I wanted to. We didn't speak again as we pulled up to the warehouse. Greg, our lackey, was waiting with the keys to a black Hummer. Got to love the company car.

"I'm not really familiar with this part of town," Greg said passing the list to me. I glanced over it for the address and I felt myself go cold. I knew exactly where we were making a delivery tonight. I passed the list to Vince who gave it a glance before his face turned to stone.

"I'm driving the rig," Vince said menacingly. Greg relinquished the keys quickly then fumbled for the passenger door to the Hummer, barely getting in before I gunned the engine and took off down the street, Vince following us in the eighteen-wheeler. Twenty minutes later we pulled up behind _The Racer's Edge_, the strangeness of Harry being the new addition to our client list not escaping me.

Harry gave me and Vince horrified looks when he saw us. His eyes widened at the shotgun Vince was carrying. He didn't even pretend that it was a normal night for him. Harry silently handed Greg the money which he went to count on a machine in the back of the SUV.

"It's good," Greg called out. Vince tossed him the keys for Greg to unlock the doors of the trailer. A pair of guys started unloading the parts. Vince and I walked over to Harry, Vince thrusting the list into his stunned hands.

"This is unexpected," I said conversationally. Vince sniffed next to me, shifting the shotgun slightly. Harry stared at it warily then gave Vince's face a long look. He must have figured out that Vince wouldn't have trouble shooting him, regardless of our history together.

"I'm gonna pretend that I don't see either of you. I'm not going to mention these visits ever," Harry said vehemently, his hands rising in a gesture of peace, "I'd really like to continue dealing directly with Greg." Vince nodded at him.

"I think that would be best Harry," I told him pleased that he understood the need for boundaries. Vince and I returned to the Hummer to lean against it, releasing Harry from the conversation. We watched the trailer being emptied. Greg bounded over to Harry to ask for a new list. One of the bay doors opened up and Vince tensed beside me. For a moment I thought we had been set up but the sight that met me made me wish we had been. I recognized the woman who walked across the pavement, a piece of paper in her hand.

"This isn't going to be a problem is it Harry?" I heard her ask as he ran his eyes across her list. He shook his head no before his eyes came up to rest on my face. Letty finally turned to follow his gaze, her eyes landing on mine. She raised an eyebrow at me but I didn't move. I was too angry. She turned away, silently dismissing me. My hands itched to find their way around her neck. Greg was supplied the new list. He tossed Vince the keys but Vince threw them back. Greg happily entered the rig and we followed him back to the warehouse in the Hummer. I think he was eager to be away from the two of us with our murderous glares.

Vince and I didn't talk at all on the way back to the house. It was only midnight now. The party was still in full swing. We'd only been gone for eighty minutes. Letty was waiting for me inside, sitting on the landing of the stairs with Leon. Jesse and Mia were also there, making jokes. Letty gave me calm look which made my temper rise. So she was going to pretend that nothing was wrong. Vince closed the door behind us before leaning against it with his arms crossed.

I pointed to Letty angrily, "You! Upstairs! Now!"

Her eyes narrowed, "You sure you don't want Justine instead?"

The team whipped their gazes between my livid face and her pretend calm one. Her eyes were flashing too much to truly be considered calm. I flashed up the small set of stairs separating us, coming to lean down into her face. She didn't even flinch.

"I'm not repeating myself," I told her so low that only Leon could hear me.

"And I'm not explaining myself to you," she replied just as low. I gripped the front of her leather vest, dragging her to her feet. No one stopped me as I hoisted her over my shoulder, carrying her up and out of sight of our house full of guests. She didn't struggle or fight as I expected her to. In fact she didn't respond at all as I threw her on our bed. I stepped back to start pacing the floor. Letty kicked off her boots, removed her socks, and then lay back on the bed to watch me.

"So you're slinging parts for Harry after hours," I started, trying to inject calm into my voice.

"Not really," she responded. I stopped to look at her.

"Then what are you really doing?" She didn't respond so I went over to the bed to reach for her vest again. She popped up onto her knees, pushing my hands away.

"Don't do that again!" she yelled at me enraged.

"No, don't you do that again!" I yelled back. "You know the type of people he's involved with! We shoot people Letty! Shoot them!" I was so angry. Couldn't she see that I didn't want her to be hurt? This was too dangerous for her.

"You need to chill out. I'm a big girl, I can handle myself," she said, not yelling this time but not calmly either.

"Clearly not," I countered with less heat.

"You're not objecting to Vince being out there with you," Letty pointed out, sinking back onto the bed. I resumed pacing. She was expecting me to say something about Vince being a burly guy but I surprised her.

"Vince and I are doing this together, watching each other's backs."

She gave me a sad smile, "Well at least you took my advice."

I sat on the side of the bed, rubbing her stomach placating, "Letty, I'm begging you to stop. I won't be able to protect you if Harry crosses me or my boss." The lie came quickly. I knew deep down that I would step in to protect her from any threat, regardless of the lines I'd have to cross. She unbuttoned her vest and pants, shrugging out of both before flipping over onto her stomach. She'd been completely naked under that outfit. Wow. I lay on my side to run my hand lazily over her body.

"What if I worked with you and Vince?" she asked suddenly. I didn't want to say no. I placed a kiss on her shoulder.

"I think you'd be too distracting to me." I felt her huff under my hand.

"You're unbelievable Toretto," she told me lazily. I'd started tracing patterns on her skin. The door to our room opened and I jumped up, flinging the covers over Letty's body.

"Yo Dom, we all need to talk," Leon began without preamble to lean against the dresser.

"This can't wait?" I asked in frustration.

"No," said Mia moving past him and into the room to prop herself against the window sill.

"What about our guests?" I asked trying to shoo them back downstairs but Jesse came in, going to sit at Letty's feet. He tickled them and she kicked him lightly.

"They won't even notice we're gone," Leon said.

"So stop stallin'," Vince growled, pushing in last and leaning against the shut door.

I sat on the edge of the bed to look at each of them. It felt like an intervention. I waved my hand for someone to start talking.

"We can't go on like this," Mia said.

"Yeah, we're supposed to be a team," Jesse added.

"But really we're more like family," Mia continued.

"And family doesn't keep secrets from each other," Leon tacked on.

"They want to know what's going on," Vince said gruffly.

"And you agree," I stated looking at Vince. He shrugged.

"I don't want any more surprises," he responded, pointing at Letty who was still lying covered up on her stomach. She hadn't moved.

"Alright, so who's sharing first?" I asked. Leon, Jesse, and Mia looked between one another confused. "I want to hear yours before I tell you mine."

Letty spoke, her voice sounding sleepy, "They're talking about your secrets dipshit. Well our secrets really."

I sighed, looking at the eager faces of Mia, Leon, and Jesse. They really wanted to know what was going on. And I didn't have the heart not to tell them. Leaning against the headboard, I swung my legs onto the bed and proceeded to explain in excruciating detail how Vince and I were moonlighting for Lucky.

"Well that explains where you and Vince go. But it doesn't explain your disappearances Letty," Mia said a quarter of an hour later. Vince spared her from responding, telling them the story of how we saw Letty tonight at a job. He didn't mention Harry and neither did I. I didn't want to taint our team's current legitimate dealings with him.

"I'm impressed," Jesse said in awe, giving Letty's prone figure an appreciative look.

"So what now?" I asked them.

"Maybe we should all consider helping you and Vince out," Leon suggested. I threw him a nasty look.

"What?" he asked innocently. I nodded my head at Mia making his eyes open in understanding, "Oh."

"Don't bother telling me you don't want me to do it. I'm not volunteering," Mia said quickly.

"Smartest shit I've heard all night," Vince approved. Mia gave him a small smile which he returned.

"What about you Jesse?" I asked to be fair. I wanted to see what he would do.

"I dunno Dom. I'm not as intimidating as you or Vince," he explained, "And I don't think I could shoot anyone either."

"That's fair," I told him. I returned my gaze to Leon.

"You shoot anyone lately scruffy?" Leon asked Vince.

"Define 'lately'," Vince responded, his lips curling into a menacing smile. Leon seemed to mull this over.

"What about you baby girl? You keeping your old job or moving to the new one?" Leon asked instead. Letty finally stirred, twisting herself in the sheets to cover her body. She sat with her back against the headboard with me, knees drawn up to her chest, head resting on her folded arms.

"Neither. I'm taking a break," I reached out to rub her arm. Thank God for small favors. She gave Vince a half smile, "I was almost shot tonight."

Leon laughed, "Well I think I'll sit this one out too."

Mia's was looking at the floor, her face twisted into a confused frown. Her eyes bounced between me and Letty then back at the floor.

"What's wrong?" I asked her. She gave me a sharp look then picked up whatever had caught her attention on the floor. The guys stared as Mia raised her eyebrow at me, Letty's vest hanging from her fingers.

"Well time to go," Leon said clapping his hands together and moving swiftly to the door which Vince had slipped out of before the other's had time to react.

"Yep, night Dom. Letty," Jesse said to us quickly, running behind Leon. Mia chucked the vest at Letty who laughed.

"You two are so sick," Mia said ruefully, shaking her head then closing the door behind her.

"Think they'll respect a closed door in the future?" Letty asked me with a grin. I kissed her.

"They'll get an eyeful if they don't," I told her before pulling her underneath me.


	15. Coup

**Disclaimer: Don't own the following: The Fast and the Furious, The Italian Job, Ocean's Eleven, or anything else possibly recognizable.**

**A/N: Thank you again to all who read, all who reviewed. It's been awesome writing this story. I'm ready to put this one to bed.**

**

* * *

**

**Chapter 15: Coup**

"Charlize Theron is so bad ass in this movie," Leon said appreciatively before stuffing more popcorn in his mouth.

"Le, less eating, more stringing," Mia told him stopping to thrust another bowl of popcorn at him.

"Mia, I'm really starting to get tired of doing this every couple of days," Leon pouted.

"Well if someone would stop eating the strings bare we wouldn't have to constantly replace them."

"I wonder if it's even possible for a MINI to hold that much weight, adjusted shocks or not," Jesse mused, stringing his popcorn absentmindedly. At his current rate he'd never finish a full string. I grinned. Only Jesse would be concerned about something so small.

"Are MINI's even Italian?" Mia asked. Vince threw popcorn at her.

"Hell no." The rest of us laughed.

Jesse spoke up again, his eyes still oriented at the TV, "Wonder how feasible it is to pull a heist."

"What is your fixation on movie reality tonight Jes?" Leon asked seriously. His tone made us all look up and stare at Jesse.

"Dunno. But if it's done right, it's the best kind of self employment," he stated.

"Sure. Minimum work, maximum pay…if it goes well," Leon agreed.

"Unless you get caught," Mia said slowly.

"Or shot," Vince added evenly. I gave Vince a sharp look but he rolled his eyes at me. I grinned. Vince was worried about shooting other people, not himself being on the receiving end.

"Yeah. But think about it, if you plan it right no one has to be hurt," Jesse continued.

"Where is this coming from Jes?" I asked. He shrugged.

"Just thought it would be a cool family activity," he stated before returning his focus completely to the movie. Leon shook his head and I heaved a big sigh. Jesse was starting to sound like Letty. She wasn't thrilled that Vince and I still worked alone. Mia waved her hand in front of my face. _'What?'_ She pointed at the popcorn string and I handed it to her.

"We _are_ doing a family activity," Mia chirped, ruffling Jesse hair as she collected the other strings. Vince stuffed popcorn in his mouth, chomping loudly. "Well most of us," she amended ruefully.

Mia began to work on the tree while we continued to watch the movie. My mind was starting to wander. Towards the end Letty walked in, carrying a handful of mail. She tossed it onto my lap then plopped down on the floor next to Leon, resting her head on his shoulder. He tugged her hair and she mumbled something in his ear. I couldn't make out the words but her voice sounded suggestive. He laughed pushing the popcorn at her. Those two were like unruly siblings: nothing but trouble when they got together. The last time they'd been this secretive, Mia had gotten unauthorized mods to her car. I was going to keep a sterner eye on them.

We were ten minutes into a second movie when Mia grabbed the mail, coming to sit between me and Vince. She started sorting through it, occasionally tossing some back on my lap. She paused to look over an abnormally thick letter, her eyebrows coming together as she chucked it onto Letty's lap. Letty looked startled for a moment then she looked at the return address. I noticed her blinking rapidly before she sat on the envelope. Leon broke the silence.

"Maybe we should consider doing heists," he suggested mildly.

"Where is this coming from?" I asked again.

Letty nudged him, "What you think we could be like Ocean's Eleven?"

Vince snorted, "Not likely. We don't know any Ocean and I don't know five other people I trust."

"No. I mean we should consider something like fencing jewelry or popping trucks or something like that," Leon explained in between bites of popcorn.

"Popping trucks might be cool," Jesse agreed eagerly.

"Are you serious?" Mia asked shocked.

Vince gave her a long look, "That might not be a bad idea."

"Oh yeah, and how would you do that exactly?" Mia shot back.

"Well it looks like the best way is to get the truck while it's en route. Less security and whatnot," Jesse said looking Mia in the eye for the first time tonight. She shook her head.

"Actually that makes a lot of sense," Leon added.

"Think about it, there's only one guy on the truck," Vince said.

"And if it's isolated on a road at night, all alone," I continued more to goad Mia than anything else.

She huffed impatiently, "But it would be _in motion_." She sounded like we were idiots.

"There are ways around that," Letty said quietly. Leon grinned.

"We could really do this Dom," Jesse continued seriously to make us give it the consideration it deserved, "only you can't go in your car. The Mazda is like your unicorn Dom." I understood. It was too original for it not to be recognized in an instant. The same could be said for all of our cars.

"It's not like we're keeping with the law right now," Vince noted.

"Well I want to do it," Leon said abruptly. Mia smacked the back of his head, "Did I say you had to join me?"

She got up moving to the stairs muttering under her breath, "This family is insane."

"I'd do it," Vince said as soon as we heard Mia slam her bedroom door, "probably more fun that what we're doing now."

"Can we do it, please Dom?" Jesse begged, smiling a bit. He knew I was caving, giving the idea more thought than I should have.

"Sure. If we can plan it right," I said. After all why do the work for someone else when you can do it for yourself?

"Yes," Jesse said punching the air happily. Leon laughed.

"I'm in," Letty told us calmly. I looked at her long and hard.

"Didn't think you'd consider doing something like this," I commented. She'd balked when I'd decided to run trucks for Tran. She'd really flipped out when she found out I was working for Lucky. What we were discussing was a hell of a lot more than that. She squared her shoulders.

"I said I'm in."

"You sound sure baby girl," Leon agreed. Vince gave her a warning look.

"I'm not going to watch on the sidelines while the boys have all the fun." Finally it clicked for me. Her participation would make the difference for her. She'd wanted the option to choose whether she went along with us or not. And she was ready to ride. The thought sobered me. I realized that if we went through with this I would be risking her life. Prison or death awaited capture. I folded my arms over my chest.

"Oh there he goes, assuming responsibility for all of us," she grinned throwing up her hands in exasperation. I grinned back. She was such a smart ass.

"You wish," I countered. "I was just thinking about you pulling jobs in tight black spandex."

Leon laughed, "I definitely wouldn't mind seeing that."

"I will if you do," she grinned saucily punching Leon lightly in the arm.

We sat up for the rest of the night, making jokes and intermittently planning out how we could potentially rob trucks while they were in motion. Jesse came up with the idea of grappling guns to remove the glass and allow for someone to jump from the roof of a car into the truck. Vince volunteered to jump into the truck. He didn't have a problem with any of the job duties: jumping between moving vehicles, incapacitating the drivers, or driving the rig. Letty suggested that maybe Vince could tranquillize the drivers instead of killing them. Leon suggested a helmet to protect Vince's pretty face. Vince suggested a knuckle sandwich for Leon and a place for us to stash the cars we would use for the jobs.

Jesse was really getting into the planning. He'd joked that we should refer to the house as "The Fort". I was really glad we were all getting entertainment value from planning grand theft. Letty suggested that we only needed three cars. Letty would drive the first with Leon. Leon would use the first gun to remove the glass from the truck. I would drive the second with Vince. Vince would use the second gun to repel onto the truck. Jesse would drive the third, keeping us informed of any police activity on the scanners. That brought the conversation back around to inconspicuous cars that we could use in place of our more conspicuous ones. We hadn't come to an agreement when Mia finally broke up the party as the sun came up. She made breakfast and we ate quietly, stewing about the rides.

"So did ya'll work out all the details?" she asked sleepily.

"Yeah," Vince grumbled between forkfuls of food.

"That's good." Mia never mentioned it again. She went on to pretend she never knew what we were up to. But she helped us make up the best alibis, keeping suspicion non-existent. In her own way, she'd worked herself into the plan too.

* * *

Surprisingly we weren't too abnormal after we pulled the first job three months later. It had taken time to get three Honda Civics and secure the parts to fix them up without arousing suspicion. We were all running high off the adrenaline rush of pulling off our plan. No one had been hurt. No one was locked up. So in honor of this we had an impromptu barbeque after we closed up the shop and café. Mia reached in for the corn first eager to thank God for bringing us back safe, for returning her family to the fort. And we had a great time trading jokes and ribbing each other about mundane things.

But it was the second job that started to eat away at the people we once were. This time, the knowledge that we had pulled off the first job flawlessly gave us the confidence to pull off the second job. The adrenaline, coupled with this confidence amped us up, our egos slightly larger than the house could hold. Mia suggested that we have a party to relieve the pent up stress which was unanimously seconded. Eagerly we got dressed and rode out to the races.

"Hi Dom!" the greeting hit me seconds after I exited the car.

"Josie," I returned in greeting. She smiled. Guess I got her name right. She reached over to touch my bicep lightly.

"So can we expect the party to be at your place tonight?" she asked batting her eyes a little bit. She was missing the mark on playing coy. I leaned in a little bit, taking her hand and removing it from me in such a way that it didn't seem rude.

"Of course," I replied giving her a wink. Josie looked ready to continue the conversation but she hesitated as Letty walked up from behind me. For a moment I didn't think Letty was going to stop until she decked the girl. Josie must have thought the same thing because she took a few stumbling steps back.

"Letty," Josie said with all traces of flirtation gone from her tone.

"I suggest you keep backing up unless you want me to help rearrange your face," Letty growled aggressively at Josie who quickly scampered away. Letty stood still, watching Josie melt into the crowd, her arms folded. As far as I was aware, Letty had never threatened any of these flirts before. Or if she had, it had never occurred in front of me or in front of a crowd of nosy people either.

"She was just saying hello," I told her defensively. We didn't need to have this out here.

"Whole lotta touching for a simple hello."

"It didn't mean anything."

"Oh, so is that what I have to put up with from now on?" Letty snapped. I didn't bother to answer turning to watch Hector approach me. I heard her mutter under her breath, "Coño." I felt my temper simmering beneath my skin. We were going to fight about this later.

"Hector, how we doing this tonight?" I asked to cover our skirmish. Letty moved to stand next to Leon and Vince, her posture stiff. Oh yeah, the battle was coming later.

And I remembered two hours later when we were back at the house with a few beers under my belt that we were at war. I'd walked into the house an hour earlier, purposefully ignoring Letty. I chatted up every girl in the place. It didn't matter if I was just making a random introduction or asking the girl to excuse me while I went to get another beer: I made sure to touch them all. I expected to get approached about it but somewhere in all of that I lost track of her. It was just as well. I was starting to get tired of making nice. Some of the girls were taking it a bit far, making suggestions that I would never take them up on.

"Hey, I brought cigars. You want one?" Hector asked me shaking a box in front of me. I nodded placing a hand on his shoulder to stop him. Mia would kill us if we smoked these things in the house.

"Backyard," I told him, pointing to the general direction of the kitchen.

Hector grinned in understanding, "Cool. I'll meet you there. I'm going to rustle up some of the boys."

I met him, Vince, Leon, Jesse, Edwin, Sam, and at least five other guys out there. He passed the box of cigars around and we each took one. Jesse eyed his warily, giving it a tentative sniff. He frowned.

"Um, how do I smoke this?" Jesse asked still turning the cigar around in his hand. A couple of us chuckled quietly. Jesse seemed to know that it wasn't meant to hurt his feelings though.

Leon gave his cigar a sniff, "Who's got the cutter?"

One of Hector's friends produced a cutter before unwrapped his cigar and snipping off the end. He stuck the cigar in his mouth then produced a fancy looking lighter. We watched him take a few small tugs to light it, finally giving it a deep pull. The resulting exhalation of smoke he gave out sounded satisfied.

"Hmm, it's good," the guy said twisting his cigar in his fingers to give it an appreciative glance. Vince nodded, taking the cutter next and following the same procedure. Jesse gave his cigar another sniff.

"I should have known," Letty teased from the top of the back stairs. Heads turned and a few of the guys waved to her. I watched her approach us, coming to stand next to Jesse.

"You want one too?" Hector offered with a grin. Letty shook her head no.

"Can't handle it baby girl?" Leon joked. She grinned.

"You need something?" Vince asked after taking another puff of his cigar. Sam, Leon, Jesse, and I were the only ones still waiting to start ours.

"Nope," she grinned wider. Something in that grin was evil. My eyes narrowed. I couldn't say anything to her since I was pretending to ignore her.

Jesse cleared his throat, "Letty, you ever smoke a cigar before?" She nodded and he shoved it at her. "I need an assist."

Letty chucked along with the rest of us, sitting on top of the picnic table. She turned the cigar around in her hand, before giving it a slow sniff. Every eye back here was on her. She shrugged carelessly removing the wrapper slowly. She held her hand out and the cutter appeared in her palm. We watched her snip the end then give then place the cigar between her fingers. I stopped breathing when she slowly opened her mouth, licking her lips before wrapping them lovingly around the cigar. Hector's friend produced a flame for her which she carefully used, her small puffs making her mouth contract in a way that I never wanted to see again outside of our bedroom. When she was satisfied that the cigar was lit, she held the end she'd just caressed out for Jesse. He looked like I'd felt years ago when I realized Letty was in fact a girl worth noticing outside of the garage.

"Jeez Letty, do me next," Sam whispered reverently. His breath was coming quicker than it should have. She gave him a lopsided smile.

"Jesse's young and cute. What's your excuse?" she threw back. Hector laughed. I clenched my teeth.

"You've got hella skills mami," another one of Hector's friends commented. I just wanted to punch everyone in the face.

"Whatever," Letty said without heat. She yawned then came to stand really close to me, "When you're finished, I could really use a massage." I sucked in a deep breath. She smiled and then we watched her walk back in the house.

"I wonder where she learned that," Edwin commented idly. So did I.

"Um Dom, you want mine?" Jesse asked me nervously. He still hadn't put his lips to the slowly burning cigar. I shook my head. I didn't want it, not really. I was supposed to be pretending that she had no affect on me. He wrinkled his nose.

"It's not like Dom can trade you," Leon quipped. I finally looked down at my hand. I'd crushed the poor cigar. Vince started guffawing, the rest of the guys joining in. Great. Well if I couldn't win in the small battles, I guess I should just go try my hand at the overall war. Throwing down my cigar on the table to more laughter, I ground out my 'good night' then trudged up the stairs.

* * *

"So Mia, I was thinking that we should get dinner together sometime," I heard Vince tell her two days after our third heist. I was sitting in a chair far behind the café counter, pretending to look over the books but really reading a magazine. I was waiting with Mia for one of the vendors to show up, roped into moving her heavy shipment boxes.

Mia reply was slow and deliberate, "It's not wise for me to date my brother's friends."

"Come on Mia, it's just dinner…," she must have shaken her head no because he gave a frustrated sigh, "I really think you'd like _Cha-Cha-Cha_."

"I'm sorry but no," she stated softly. I flipped another page without really looking at it. Huh. Despite all of my warnings to Vince, he still had the chutzpa to ask her out.

"I'm not Dom and Dom's not Tran," he said quietly, his voice slightly more forceful.

"I wasn't thinking that at all."

"Then what's the problem?"

"Dom and Letty…" she began but he cut across her viciously.

"Comparing us to them would be like comparing domestics to imports. Don't do it Mia."

She took a deep breath, "I've known you too long to risk us having a relationship that would end badly."

"You don't know that."

"Yes, I do. I've known you practically my whole life. You don't like to be tied down and I want more than fifteen minutes with you in bed."

"You saw how Dom…"

"I thought we weren't going to compare us to them."

Vince ground his teeth together, "Mia you're more to me than a quick lay."

Mia seemed to ponder this information over in her head, "Can you tell me where you go on those nights you aren't with the rest of the team?"

The question brought Vince up short. No one knew what he did on those random nights. I just assumed that he was going to help his mother. But I knew that wasn't always the whole truth. Mia seemed bolstered by this lack of response from Vince. I heard her start to bustle around the counter. A car, well sounded more like a pick-up truck came to a stop across the street. Finally a stool scraped across the ground.

"Later Mi, later Dom." I flipped another page as his engine came to life then sped away. He was gone in less than thirty seconds and I was going to pretend I never heard the conversation. I heard the stool scrape the ground again, but it was lighter in quality.

"Hi, what can I get you?" Mia asked. I paused mid page flip. The casual question had been laced with curiosity and interest.

"Ah, I dunno," the voice was new, male, and sounded just as interested as Mia's had a second before. "What's good here?"

"Pretty much everything," Mia said noncommittally.

"Everything huh," he parroted. It sounded like he was smiling. I flipped a page more roughly than I intended.

"Tell you what. I'll make you the house special."

"Oh yeah, what that?" he teased.

Mia chuckled, "Tuna on white." What the hell was she trying to do to that guy? It had been years and her tuna salad had not improved.

"Tuna on white."

"Yep."

"Could you cut off the crust?" What was this, second grade? What sort of adult cut the crust off his sandwich? Mia didn't respond but I could hear her working to put together the sandwich. There was a chopping noise. Guess he was getting his ends cut off. I heard the plate being set on the counter.

"Here you go. Tuna on white, no crust."

"Thanks," he said politely before talk ceased. I could only assume he was trying to choke down his sandwich. I heard the rumble of a much larger truck come to a stop outside. Must be the vendor. The driver came in, dropped off a few pallets of soda then left. I made a production of standing, flexing my muscles before starting to move the pallets left by the front counter. Rather than get the hand truck which would have made the job quicker, I decided to pick them up one at a time to prolong my assessment of the situation. I gave the guy at the counter a cursory glance but he didn't seem bothered by my appearance. Actually it looked like he was trying not to look at Mia too long. She was leaning on the counter with one of her textbooks open, at a minimum pretending to read. He kept sneaking glances at her between bites of his sandwich. I was surprised he wasn't having trouble swallowing it. He didn't complain either.

Moving the soda didn't take long but I didn't like the way surfer dude had been looking at my sister. That would be my nickname for him until I got his real one. He looked like a surfer with his fresh faced, boy next door kind of look. His sandy blond hair had been long enough to show off its natural curliness. He was lean like a surfer too and his tone sounded like he was used to hanging out on the beach a lot. But it was his smile that made me afraid to leave Mia alone with him. When he'd figured out that she was pretending to be preoccupied he'd smiled to himself, taking another bite of his sandwich. The grin had been wide showing all of his pearly, even teeth. His face had lit up and his eyes had crinkled happily. There was genuine attraction there. I'd be damned if I'd leave him here alone to hit on my sister. I resumed my seat in the back, going back to pretending that I was super absorbed in my magazine. Finally the surfer dude finished his sandwich and I heard the plate being pushed up the counter.

"How much do I owe you?" he asked politely.

"Three bucks," Mia said. There was a clink of the plate reaching the sink and the rustle of the surfer removing his wallet and his money.

"You make the tuna every day? That sandwich was really great," he complemented with a smile in his voice.

"Yep."

"Then I'll see you tomorrow," he said jovially before the stool scraped the floor. I heard his footfalls fade from the building. I left not long after him. I expected the encounter to fade from my consciousness as the day wound to a close. And it would have too but Mia had this dreamy half smile on her face for the rest of the night.

* * *

"Jesse you look horrible," Mia told him when he finally crawled out of his room at eight in the morning the Saturday after our fourth heist.

"Might have something to do with the chick I saw skipping out of here near dawn," Leon joked. Jesse flashed him his middle finger. He flopped down in the armchair, covering his eyes with his arm.

"That will teach him to try keeping up with us shot for shot," Vince said around his beer. He was trying to relieve his hangover with a bit of the hair of the dog. Letty and I laughed lightly in agreement. We'd really gotten sloppy drunk last night. Leon had bought her a massive bottle of Patrón to congratulate her on pulling off a really bad ass move during the last job. When confronted with barreling into a construction site she'd driven her car under the rig, keeping pace until we returned to unblocked roadway. Days later I thought the move had been awesome but that night I'd made her miserable, yelling myself hoarse till we got home. Leon had suggested the liquor as a peace offering. And we'd all ended up passing out trying to beat the bottle.

"Play nice," Mia said as she crossed the room to answer the now ringing doorbell. Jesse moaned in pain. Leon shook his head as he chucked the bottle of aspirin and a bottle of water into Jesse's lap. The door creaked open, "Yes?"

"Hello ma'am. I'm looking for Leticia Ortiz. Does she live here?" The voice wasn't one I was used to but something about it sounded familiar to me. Letty popped out of my arms, running for the door. From what I could see she was stunned by the tall black guy standing in the doorway.

Mia cleared her throat backing away, "Ok then."

"You never responded," he told her smoothly.

"Uh, wait here a second," she stammered out, turning to race up the stairs. We could hear her throwing open a drawer. The jingle of her keys were drowned out by her rapid decent back down the stairs. She pushed past him slapping the mystery envelope into his chest. His smile was all I saw before she shut the door and moved down the front steps. The voice clicked in my head. I'd heard it only once when I'd called Letty while she'd been away. I practically dislodged the door when I threw it open, stomping angrily down the stairs. Vince, Leon, Mia, and Jesse spilled out of the house after me. But Letty was already peeling off down the street, her ex trying to follow in his rental car.

I was expecting an explanation from her but she walked in the garage at nine thirty she breezed past me to work on a Honda 2000. Rather than get into an argument I finished hooking up undercarriage lights for Mia then drove her car to the café at eleven. Tossing her keys onto the counter I went to take up my position at the desk in the back. I sifted through the mail here until I got my hands on the latest _Import Tuner_ magazine. A turkey sandwich appeared on the desk. Mia put her hand on my shoulder.

"Remember she chose you," Mia said wisely before patting my back and returning to the counter. I returned to my magazine. An hour later I heard the familiar sound of _The Racer's Edge_ truck pulling up. This guy just didn't give up.

"Tuna on white, no crust right?" Mia called out to him. She'd been making him the 'house special' for three weeks now. This had become a contest of wills between them. I felt my face split into a wry grin. I was waiting to see which one of them would crack first. Perhaps today would be the day when things might change…


End file.
